Kellic - Postcards and Polaroids
by shewritesthefics
Summary: Kellin has just moved to a small beach town in order to escape. But he knows no one here. People don't often like him... how on earth is he going to make friends? Vic lives in this town with his brother Mike and his parents. He has a good life, but it lacks excitement. Will meeting Kellin and discovering new things about him and his past change Vic's life forever? This is a Kellic.
1. Chapter 1 - Beach

Chapter One - The Beach

Kellin's POV

I threw my bags down on the floor and looked into the room infront of me. It was practically empty; with only a bed, a chest of drawers, and a few posters on the walls. This was my room when I stayed over my Uncle's house, but I guess it was just my room now. End of. I didn't want to be here, but what choice did I have? I wasn't going to live with my pathetic excuse of a father anymore. I guess there were some advantages - I'd get the fresh start I'd wanted for a long time, and I had never lived so close to a beach before. But for someone like me, someone so... damaged, would being in a new place even make a difference?

**My name is Kellin Quinn. I am 17 and I have brown hair and blue eyes. I'm still in school for a little while, but now i'll be joining a different one. I don't know anyone there. The only person I know here is my Uncle, but he does important office work so i'm lucky if I even see him for a couple of hours a day. Most of the time he can't even make it home at night, so he stays in a hotel near to his work. This means that i'll always be home alone, but I like that. He's moderately rich and so his house is huge - including my room. I guess now that I live here I can fill these walls with posters.**

I sat on the bed and pulled one bag into my lap, opening it and sorting through my stuff. My Mom had helped me pack most of it so I had no idea which one all my different possessions were in. I found my phone and placed it on the bed next to me, and then continued to look in the bag. I found some things I'd forgotten i'd had, like some swimming trunks, old Pokemon cards and a valentines card I got from a girl in my class when I was six. It still had faded hearts drawn inside with pink gel pen. I looked around the room, wondering what I was going to do today. My Uncle was at work and most of my stuff was still in my bags, and I didn't have the motivation to start unpacking yet. I looked back at the things on my bed and my eyes focused on the swimming trunks. Maybe i'd go to the beach.

I looked at the clothes I was already wearing - a black band top and worn skinnies. I didn't feel like changing so I decided I didn't mind if these got dirty, I had already worn them on the several trains it took to get here. I left my phone on my bed and went into the kitchen, wondering if I should leave a note. My Uncle might not even come home today though, so why bother?

I left everything but myself at the house, locking the door and then hiding the key in the plant pot. Knowing me i'd lose it at the beach and then be locked out for the rest of the day and night. The walk to the beach was a short and uneventful one, and I was pleased to see that it was sunny and hot today. Almost too hot, I was starting to sweat under my clothes. Maybe a swim was what I needed.

Vic's POV

I looked out of my window, pleased to see that today was just as sunny as the day before had been. It was half term so that meant that Mike and I could do what we liked, such as going to the arcade and the beach.

**My name's Vic Fuentes. I live in a small house by the beach with my brother Mike, and my Mother and Father. We're quite a close family, and i'm pretty happy with my life at the moment. We're Mexican and while sometimes this attracts the wrong kind of attention, we don't let that bother us. We just live without regrets and do what we love. Although, I do admit... there's not as much excitement in my life as i'd like there to be. Every day is the same - wake up, go to school, go to the beach, to the arcade, have dinner, sleep. I want something new to happen to me, something that will change everything.**

But for now, it looked like the best thing I could do today was go to the beach. I'd always loved the beach - just the way I was surrounded with the sun, sand and the sea. It was beautiful. It was always fun to go with my younger brother too. I had just turned 17 and Mike was almost 16. Yet, he was taller than me. It wasn't surprising though, I was a small, skinny Mexican boy who probably didn't even look 17. People always thought Mike was older.

I got changed into my trunks and grabbed a towel from the rack, running down the stairs. "MIKE!" I shouted, and within a minute he followed me down, carrying a towel of his own as if he had read my mind. "Beach?" I asked.

"Hell yeah"

Our Father was out working so we went into the kitchen to tell our Mother where we were going.

"We're going to the beach, Mama. See you later" I said, hugging her.

"Okay, be safe boys" she smiled, as she hugged Mike after me.

We left the house, running barefoot down the street until the beach was in sight.

Kellin's POV

Okay, so I wasn't just a little hot. I was boiling. I had forgotten just how hot it was here and hadn't really packed anything appropriate to wear, and now I was getting punished for it. I walked across the soft, steaming sand. I had taken my shoes off as they were black as well, and I was carrying them at my side. I rarely came to the beach or even went swimming, but the ocean was just calling me. The water looked so cool, and I was dying strolling along the shore. I looked around me, there weren't too many people here and they were quite far away. It seemed that I had picked an unpopular corner of the beach to walk across. That didn't bother me though, I knew it would look weird to see a guy my age going into the water wearing the clothes that I was, so it was better if less people saw me. I put my shoes down on the sand, thinking for a moment before taking off my shirt too and throwing it down next to them. I sighed at my unbelievably pale skin. Compared to everyone else here, I looked like paper. My Uncle would always joke about it. I guessed now I might finally get a tan though.

Leaving my stuff on the floor, I walked slowly over to the water, dipping my foot in a wave that was speading itself out along the shore. I sighed happily as I felt how cool it was, and I knew that I needed to be in that water before I passed out from exhaustion. I walked further into the water, looking at the waves infront of me. Despite the hot weather it was still fairly windy, and the waves were big and constant. But they were also cold and that hydration is what made me feel that I needed to go further into the water. I was almost in a trance, as if the water was calling me. It was up to my knees now, but still I was walking. I could feel shells and rocks on the sea bed, some quite sharp. I went further into the water until it was up to my chest and I could take my feet off of the ground. I sighed happily once more, feeling much better than I previously had. I noticed a small current pulling me further into the water, but it was only little. Harmless really. I just knew that I was happier to be cooling down.

I stayed in the water for a while, happily drifting along with my eyes closed. The waves were getting bigger around me and every so often one would catch me by surprise and push me under, but then I would return to the surface. I wondered how long it had been and opened my eyes, looking infront of me to the shore. But I couldn't see it. I looked around, panicking. How far out was I? I could see the shore now but it was much further than I had guessed, and the deep water was surrounding me. I stretched my foot out, testing the distance to the bottom. But I couldn't reach the bottom. Panicking, I began thrashing my feet and arms madly, trying to return to the shore. I made it a little closer before I began to grow weak - maybe I wasn't feeling as better as I had thought. I breathed in as I tried to begin moving again, but just as I did this, I felt a wave crash above my head. It knocked me under the water and I felt the water go down my throat and into my lungs. I tried to move but there was so much pressure above my head that I couldn't reach the surface again. I was drowning, and I couldn't save myself.

Vic's POV

Finally we reached the beach and as always, we walked straight over to the right-hand side of it. We liked it there because there were some rocks at the side that we had climbed on ever since we were little, and no one ever came to this side of the beach because it wasn't as safe as being in the middle or on the left. It was a dodgy bit of ground under the water that was completely uneven, and this meant that people couldn't surf here either because the waves would just push the boards under. This element of danger is what intrigued us, and it made us confident swimmers as we had dealt with this type of sea water all our lives.

I couldn't believe how hot it was today, I was only wearing trunks and yet I was still boiling and sweating like mad. I looked to Mike, and he seemed to be thinking the same as he looked towards the beach infront of us and wiped his forehead.

"Hey man, you got any money?" Mike asked and I stuffed my hand in my pocket, pulling out a few coins and handing them to him. "Thanks, i'm gonna go get us some drinks. Wait here" he said, and then ran off in the direction of the beach cafe. I sat down on the rock I was previously standing on, and looked down to the beach. I wouldn't go in the water just yet, I would wait for Mike since he was getting us drinks. Plus, we always raced to see who could make it to the water first. I usually won. I was watching the waves crash against the rocks when something dark caught my eye. It contrasted with the light sand, and so it captured my attention. I stood and walked a little closer, looking down at it. It was a shirt, it looked like it had blown against a rock in the wind.

_Is there someone here?_ I thought, looking out into the water. And that's when I saw it. Something trashing about in the deep water. Something... with human hands. A person. Drowning.

Kellin's POV

I was losing all strength, the water making its way into my lungs. I could feel myself passing out. I couldn't carry on, so I made one last attempt to get above the water, before the whole of me sank under and things began to get blurry. My eyes stang from the water so I let them slowly close, but then I saw a flash of colour infront of me, and the next thing I knew, something was pulling on my arm. A shark? Did they even have sharks here? Things went dark and I felt my body going. I was dying.

I opened my eyes to see the sky. It was blurry, but it was the sky. I felt pain all through my body as I began choking up water, and then I realised that someone was infront of me. This person was pushing on my chest, and soon the water was gone and I felt myself breathe again. They got off me and I sat up slowly and carefully, looking at the person infront of me. It was a guy, and he had long, messy brown hair and brown eyes. He stared at me as if he expected a response - oh yeah, this guy just saved my life. But did that mean he used CPR?

"If you're gonna do that kiss of life shit or whatever it is I will push your head under the water myself" I said, and instantly began choking again after as I felt the salty taste return to my mouth. The boy just simply laughed.

"I'm guessing you're alright then" he said.

"I think so..."

"Are you not from around here? Everyone knows not to go in this part of the water if you can't swim" he asked.

"I can swim!" I objected. "I just didn't realise how far out I had got". I also had no idea that there were certain 'parts' of the water that you shouldn't swim in. Crap.

"Well, i'm just glad you're alright now. I'm Vic, by the way" he said, smiling at me. It was unusual that I ever had strangers being nice to me, as I wasn't exactly the approachable type. People hated me. But I guessed since this guy had just saved my life and it was my first day here, maybe it would be nice to know someone.

"Kellin" I said back, trying to smile back to him. These things didn't really come naturally to me.

"So, do you think you can stand?" Vic asked me.

"Yeah, I think so" I said, slowly pushing myself to my feet, and then stumbling and nearly falling over. Vic went to catch me but then stood back again, blushing a little. That was understandable, he clearly wanted to help me but I wasn't exactly an easy person to help.

"Is there somewhere to get food around here?" I asked, becoming aware that I was standing there shirtless with skinny jeans clinging to my legs and bare feet. To be fair though, I was wearing more than this guy was. Not that I was complaining though... wow.

"Yeah, there's a cafe on the other side of the beach. My brother went to get some stuff there but he hasn't come back yet so we can just go to him" Vic said, beginning to walk up the beach. He stopped and turned around, looking at me and motioning for me to follow him. I began to walk and stumbled again, falling to my knees. I felt like Bambi or something, but the experience had drained the life and energy out of me. I needed to eat, now. Vic walked back over to me, noticing my shirt and shoes on the ground and picking them up. He then proceeded to grab my arm and pull it over his shoulders, allowing me to lean on him and begin to walk.

"You don't have to do this you know" I said, feeling a little uncomfortable about this stranger being so helpful to me.

"I know, I want to" he smiled, and continued walking. That smile...

Vic's POV

Soon we made it to the cafe and I helped Kellin to a seat, leaving him there to go and find Mike. I told Mike what had happened and asked him to get some food for Kellin, and then walked back to the table. As I came over, Kellin weakly pulled his shirt back onto himself. Pity, I liked the view. This boy was gorgeous, he had bright blue eyes and dark, browny-black hair. And when he smiled at me earlier... it was nice. I was glad I had saved him, and he seemed to be grateful, even if he had a funny way of showing his gratitude. His skin was so pale! Definitely not from around here. Plus, he lacked knowledge of the beach and if I was completely honest, he sort of lacked social skills too. I was a very social person - coming from such a close and interactive family, with several friends. He was just so different. Different and new. I liked it. I realised that now this boy was here, I didn't want him to leave too quickly. As posessive as that sounded.

"How are you feeling?" I asked, sitting across from him at the table and dragging another chair there for when Mike got back.

"A bit better actually, just insanely tired" he said, pushing his hair from his face and then resting both arms on the table, gently laying his head on top of them.

"Don't worry, Mike's getting you something" I said, and then Mike appeared behind me carrying a tray holding three Cokes and a large portion of chips. He put the drinks down and handed the chips to Kellin, who had a shocked expression on his face.

"I don't have any money to give you for this..." Kellin mumbled, looking up at Mike.

"Don't be silly, it's on us" Mike smiled, taking his seat.

"um... thankyou" Kellin said, gratefully taking a chip from the plate and eating it. Within a few minutes, they were all gone and he was smiling. I handed him his coke and he downed it, a fresh burst of energy showing on his face. He showed no signs of being someone that had been seconds from a watery death just half an hour ago.

"Better?" I asked, and Kellin nodded.

"Much better"

Kellin's POV

Food! I had never been so happy to see it. I didn't want to look like a pig infront of these two new people but I was so desperate and starving that the food was gone as quickly as I had recieved it. I then also downed a coke, and suddenly I felt far better. I knew it wasn't just the food that had me feeling like this, though. It was Vic and Mike. I had been really worried about not knowing anyone here and being treated like I had back home, but already, two people were being so kind to me. They had only known me for a really short amount of time, and yet they had still bought me lunch.

I really didn't want to leave, but I knew they probably wanted me out of their hair. They had obviously come to the beach for a reason and i'm sure it wasn't to feed some desperate stranger, but still, I didn't want to go. Just as I was about to give in and leave them alone, Vic spoke up.

"So Kellin, do you want to spend the day with us?" he asked. I didn't know how to respond, of course I really wanted to but I didn't want to cling onto them for the entire day.

"Yeah sure, as long as you don't mind" I said. I guess I was going to anyway then.

"Of course we don't" Mike smiled, and they stood, so I copied their actions.

"Beach is probably out of the question for you now Kellin so, arcade?" Vic asked. I blushed, I didn't want to ruin their plans, but I **did not **want to go back to that beach.

"Yeah sure, I'll have to get home and get some money first though" I said, I couldn't let them pay for anything else for me.

"So do we actually. We can meet you at the top of the beach in about half an hour?" Mike suggested. I liked this idea, but I realised how desperate I was beginning to look. To them, I was just some guy that couldn't swim and liked to eat. Not exactly a good image. I needed them to see who I really was before we became friends, so I knew if they actually liked me or were pitying me. I needed my charm back, the charm that allowed me to fuck things up at my old school and cause trouble, but still get out of most punishments just because people didn't want to try and argue with me. And this Vic guy, he was really appealing to me. I decided to just go for it.

"Yeah sure" I said, picking a pen up off of the table and walking over to Vic, trying to be as smooth as I could without looking stupid. I grabbed his hand so his arm was out infront of me, and began to write on his arm. "Just so we don't lose eachother... have my number" I said, writing it down and then subtly winking at him. I then picked up my shoes, walking away down the street before I began to feel stupid about what I had just done. But hey, what did I have to lose? He was kinda cute anyways.


	2. Chapter 2 - Arcade

Chapter Two - Arcade

Kellin's POV

I ran home once Mike and Vic were out of sight, and made it there within five minutes. I was aware how bad I must look since I had just nearly drowned, and it wasn't the best first impression to give. I needed to make up for it. I unlocked the house and stepped inside, running to my room and pulling over a couple of my suitcases. I opened them, looking for something to wear while I took off my soaking clothes. Eventually, I found a black top with gold writing, some dark blue skinnies and a burgundy leather jacket. I put these on and then went into the bathroom, looking at my reflection in the mirror. I didn't look too bad now, just pale and tired. I combed through my hair until it looked right and brushed my teeth again, I didn't have the time for a shower. I studied myself in the mirror again and decided my hair was still a bit awkward, so I put a hat on it backwards. That was cool, right? I grabbed some money from my wallet and my phone from my bed.

After leaving the house I stopped at a corner store to buy an energy drink. All they had was Monster but that was fine with me, I just needed something to wake me up. After this, I was ready. And I was just on time, as I recieved a text from Vic once I got there.

Vic's POV

Mike and I walked home in comfortable silence. Well, sort of comfortable. After Kellin had left, Mike had joked a little... and even now he kept glancing at my arm and smiling. That moment was running through my head over and over... the way Kellin wrote on my arm, the way he looked at me, the way he winked. He had the cutest face I had ever seen - his dark hair framed his face beautifully, and his bright blue eyes shone in the sunlight. I wondered if his hair was always as wavy as it had been, but then again, he had nearly drowned. If that was him at his worst, I couldn't wait to see him at his best.

We reached our home and walked straight through the door, greeted by our Mother in the kitchen.

"You boys are home early" she said.

"Yeah, we're just getting some money from the arcade" Mike said, smiling at her sweetly. I knew that smile, and I knew exactly what he was doing.

"So you want my money then" she laughed, getting out her purse and handing us some each. We thanked her and then walked upstairs to get changed.

"You're unbelievable, she always gives you money" I laughed.

"At least you got some too this time" Mike winked, and walked into his room, leaving me to walk into mine. I combed my hair and put a snapback on backwards over it to hold it down. I then put on some brown three quarter lengths and a grey top with white writing. I didn't look too bad now, so I left it at that and then picked up my phone from my bedside table, writing Kellin's number into it and saving it. Just as we left the house, I decided to text him.

To Kellin: It's Vic, just leaving our house now, be there in 5 :)

A moment later, Kellin replied.

From Kellin: Okay, same here :)

Today would be fun.

Kellin's POV

It didn't take long for Vic and Mike to get here, and soon we were on our way to the arcade. I couldn't help but keep glancing at Vic... he looked really good. So yes, I admit that maybe you can't tell if you're actually into a person when you've only just met. And maybe I only felt this way because he saved my life, I don't know. But I just really liked him. A lot. I decided I might flirt a little today and see how he responded. I had a feeling he was gay too from those little moments he got shy or blushed a bit, but that didn't necesarilly mean that he liked me back. It was too soon to tell, and I was more than happy to experiment.

I realised I had been staring and he may or may not have noticed, so I looked away. A moment later I felt his eyes on me, but I tried not to respond.

Vic's POV

When we reached the arcade, the look on Kellin's face made me really happy. He looked like a little child, it was clear he loved arcades. He ran through the door and went straight to one of the machines - it was a gun game of some sort. One of those ones where you break into buildings and shoot zombies. Not really my type of thing. There were three guns and Kellin stood at one, motioning at us to join him. Mike did straight away, going to the gun on the left of Kellin. This left the gun on the right.

"Sorry, this isn't really my type of thing..." I protested. It was really because I didn't want to lose to him to be honest. It looked like this was something Kellin would be good at.

"Come on Vic, please?" Kellin asked, doing puppy eyes and jutting out his bottom lip. If I had a camera with me, I would have taken a picture of him right there. That look. It was the single most sweetest thing I had ever seen, and I couldn't say no. He grinned triumphantly when he saw me walk over and join him, and patted me on the back. "you're going down" he laughed.

~~~~Three hours later~~~~

I turned around, high fiving Kellin as we both screamed "YEAH!" after once again, completing the entire game. I turned to look at Mike, but he was gone.

"Kellin, where did Mike go?" I asked, stunned.

"I have no idea... he was there a minute ago..." Kellin said, as confused as I was.

I looked at the clock on the wall, pointing at it in horror. We had been playing this game for 3 hours straight, and used all of our money on it. Kellin followed my gaze and his expression looked the same as mine.

"How did we..." he muttered.

"I have no idea"

I took out my phone, texting Mike.

To Mike: Dude where did you go? And when?

From Mike: I left about an hour ago bro. The game was boring me and I didn't want to intrude... ;)

To Mike: Intrude? What are you on about? And sorry bro, I didn't mean to leave you out...

From Mike: No problem, I don't really mind. You were clearly busy ;)

I knew exactly what he meant, but I wasn't going to respond. Kellin and I were having too much fun for that, I wasn't going to let Mike's words bother me. Partly because I hoped they were true. If it was that obvious that something was going on that Mike felt the need to leave, then maybe Kellin was aware? Maybe he knew what he was doing. Two could play at that game. I grinned as I thought of exactly where I was going to take this.

"So..." Kellin said, and I realised that I had been silent for a few minutes.

"Sorry, I was just thinking what we could do now"

"Got any ideas? I have no money" Kellin sighed, shaking his wallet upside down.

"Yeah, I have the perfect idea. Come with me" I said, hesitating a little before grabbing his hand and pulling him through the room. I silently prayed that he wouldn't mind, and he didn't seem to as he held my hand just as hard back. I think I even saw him smile a little. I led him outside onto the small basketball court, happy to see that no one was there.

"What are we doing here?" Kellin asked, as I awkwardly (and reluctantly) let go of his hand.

"What do you normally do on a basketball court, Kellin?" I joked, and he glared at me.

"Fair enough" he said, walking over to the box filled with basketballs and taking one out. "Is this free?" he asked.

"Yeah, pass it?" I asked, and he bounced it on the floor to me. I held it up, throwing it to the net. It went straight in, not even touching the rim.

"Wow you're good for your size" Kellin laughed, winking. I glared at him. "Just kidding!" he said.

"I'd like to see you do better" I challenged him, passing him the ball. He nodded and turned to the net, concentrating hard and biting down on his tongue. He bounced up a little and threw the ball, hitting the rim. He missed. Kellin sighed and looked down, ashamed. Was he blushing? I picked up the ball and walked over, laughing quietly. "It's okay Kellin, not everyone's the best" I said, putting a comforting hand on his back. He was looking down, his hair covering his face. I was worried.

"... You're clearly the expert at putting balls in holes" he said, grabbing the ball from me and running away laughing, while I stayed fixed to the spot, blushing like mad at his innuendo. He ran towards the net and threw the ball, throwing it through perfectly. He skipped back over, leaning close to my ear and whispering "but maybe I am too..." and then skipping away again. Oh...

I eventually recovered from my state and chased after him as he ran away with the ball. We were both laughing, and I was shouting at him to give it back. This earned me a few winks and he stuck his tongue out a few times, which was the cutest thing ever. Of course, these were paired with him flipping me off occasionally. I didn't care, I was just happy to be here with him. We carried on playing with the ball (don't laugh, you sick people...) until late, and the sun began setting. We sat down on the fence, looking towards the beach in the distance. I liked sitting here, you could see the sea clearly. It was beautiful. But there was something equally beautiful sitting next to me.

I turned to look at Kellin, who was smiling back at me, just as happy as I was.

"Hey..." Kellin said.

"Yeah?" I asked.

"Thanks for a great day" he smiled.

"No problem, the same to you" I said, and then thought for a moment before I shyly said "same tomorrow?". This made him smile even more and he nodded quickly.

"I'd love that" he said, and then got down from the fence, standing infront of me. "Wanna go?" he asked. I didn't really want to go, infact, I wanted to stay like this forever. But the sun had just disappeared beneath the horizon and I knew it was going to get cold and dark soon, so I agreed and jumped down. Laughing, he stood next to me and we began walking home. I noticed just how close he was standing to me - closer than a normal friend would. I think. Close enough that every so often our hands brushed against eachother. As much as I wanted to just go for it and hold it, I couldn't do it yet. I barely knew this guy, it had been one day. And since I now knew he lived here, we had a lot of time to get to know eachother. I couldn't wait.

Kellin's POV

Vic and I walked together until we reached the point we had met up at earlier. He awkwardly stood infront of me, and said 'bye'. I laughed a little and held out my hand for him to shake. I knew it was uncool and old fashioned, but it meant that I could do what I did next. He took my hand and shook it, and I took it as an opportunity to pull him forward, and hug him a little. Only like a typical bro-hug where we patted eachother's backs, but it would've been weird if I just hugged him like I wanted to. So it was close enough.

"Text me about what time you want to meet up tomorrow?" I asked, and he nodded.

"Yeah sure. See you tomorrow Kells" he smiled.

"See you tomorrow"

We both turned and walked away. _Kells_ I thought. What a cute nickname. From today, I knew that I really, really liked him. And he clearly liked me too, but I didn't know how much. _Enough to hold my hand... _I , no straight guy would act that close to another guy unless he had something to hide. I decided i'd play this game with him, oh, I would. If he was going to be difficult, so was I. I was going to mess with this boy. I was going to make him need me. He was going to think about me, and eventually, he was going to be with me. Because I needed Vic, more than I had thought. And I really, really wanted him to be mine.


	3. Chapter 3 - Iris

Chapter Three -

_I swam as well as I could while looking to the shore, the boy in my arms. I carried him bridal style out of the water and threw him onto the sand. I got onto my knees, pushing down hard onto his chest several times like I had seen in movies. _

_"Shit, please don't die on me" I said, putting my head down to his chest and listening. I could still hear a heartbeat, I could still save him. I straddled him, desperately shoving at his chest, trying to get him to cough up the water. His limp body writhed for a moment and I thought it was over, but he still wasn't waking up. I leaned back down, bringing my lips to his and blowing hair into his mouth. It was an embarassing and not so pleasant thing to do, as I found out once I tasted the sea salt on his lips. But I needed to save him. I brought myself back, looking at him again. Nothing. I felt his wrist, his pulse felt slower. But it was still there._

_"Please..." I said, sitting him up and trying to hit him on the back. Nothing. I put him back down again, hitting his chest as hard as I could. His heartbeat was slowing down. I needed to move fast, or he was going to die. I began to panic, hitting him over and over again, trying to wake him up. But he wouldn't wake up. He wasn't going to wake up. I was scared, and I was going to lose him. I just couldn't lose him. I had to do something!_

_I felt his wrist again, desperately searching for a pulse that just wasn't there anymore. _

_"KELLIN!" I screamed, pulling him towards me. "KELLIN, PLEASE! DON'T DIE! KELLIN!"_

I sat up in bed, hitting my head on the shelf above me and breathing fast. Another dream. I held my head, wincing in pain. I really needed to move this shelf. It had been 6 days since I had saved Kellin, and we had spent every one of them together. I had visited his house (his Uncle's house) once, but he hadn't visited mine yet. I realised how much I really liked him, but every night I had been having these dreams. Dreams that I didn't save him in time. Now that I knew just how amazing Kellin was, the thought of him dying that day was truly an awful thing. I was unbelievably happy that I had managed to save him and now had him as my friend, but I couldn't stop these thoughts. What if I had never saved him? What if we had never met? What if he had died that day?

This thought made me anxious, and as I had done for the past few days, I texted Kellin. He mustve thought me clingy by now, but I just felt like I needed to check up on him to make sure he was okay. He had only just come into my life, but I didn't want him to leave. I picked up my phone from the bedside table, and started writing.

To Kellin: Hey Kells! How are you?

From Kellin: Hey! I'm good thanks, you?

To Kellin: Great. What have you been doing?

I realised that it was already 12 o'clock, I had slept in. That was not something I did often.

From Kellin: Spending time with my Uncle, he was actually home when I woke up today!

To Kellin: That's cool! :) I guess that means meeting up today is out of the question?

From Kellin: Of course not, I'd love to. He's gone now anyways, was only here for half an hour. But it was something.

To Kellin: Yeah, well i'm glad you got to see him. So what do you want to do today?

From Kellin: I'm not sure, I still don't really know what's here to do.

I thought for a moment, and then I heard my Mother shout up the stairs.

"Vic, Mike! We're going out for the day, we'll be back later! Taco night!"

Mike replied a second later, shouting "I'm going out too, staying round Jaime's".

"Okay honey!"

So I guess that meant that I had the house to myself for the day. Grinning, I messaged Kellin back.

To Kellin: Wanna just come round mine for the day? Everyone's out.

From Kellin: Go for it. Meet me somewhere?

To Vic: Yeah, usual place, half 1. Good?

From Kellin: Good. See you then!

Kellin's POV

I was dressed and waiting for Vic, just on time. I was feeling a little anxious, it had been great to spend the last few days with him, but what would happen when we went to school on Monday? I realised I didn't even know what school Vic went to. I made a mental note to ask him later. While I waited, I looked around me. As we were on a slope with the beach at the bottom, I could see the sand and sea clearly from here. Normally I would have thought this pretty, but after my experience, it only gave me chills. I really didn't want to return to that beach, and I knew this was making things difficult for Vic when spending time with me. He practically lived on the beach and for my benefit he was having to look for alternatives.

I looked to the sky, thankful to see a few clouds today, unlike the other clear days. It was still about the same heat but it meant that I got a few brief breaks from the glare of the sun, even if only for a few seconds while it disappeared behind a cloud. Vic loved the hot weather, he had lived all his life like this, and he enjoyed being outside all the time. I envied Vic, he seemed to have such a wonderful life, unlike mine. But I had moved here to forget about that, so I wasn't about to address my issues again so soon. Vic was a brilliant distraction, and right on cue, he turned the corner ahead from me. His eyes locked onto mine and he waved, smiling at me as he made his way over.

"Hey" Vic said, "are you ready?"

"Yeah, let's go" I said, smiling back and following him as he began to walk in the direction he had come from. I had never seen Vic's house, I wondered what it was like. The walk was fairly short and we talked a lot on the way there, about the past couple of days and some things that Vic and Mike had done together. Eventually we were there, and I looked up at the house infront of me. It was fairly normal, quite a common house to see here. Two story, with flowers outside and a red door. We walked in and I noted the wooden floors, and the photos of their family scattered all over the walls. As we walked past I looked at some of these, stopping and grinning when I saw one of Mike and Vic as children. They both looked so cute - Mike was standing with Vic's arms wrapped around his neck, and Vic's head on his shoulder. They were both in the middle of laughing, and they looked about 8 and 9. Vic noticed me stop and walked over, laughing quietly.

"I still remember that day. My Dad had an obsession with taking pictures because he wanted to remember everything, and there were loads like this of us but this was his favourite. This was so long ago" Vic said. I turned to look at him, seeing him smile a little with happiness and nostalgia. He was clearly picturing that day in his mind. I felt a pang of jealousy as I realised that this was exactly what I wanted. I wanted a family that actually cared about me, a house covered in pictures, and some memories to look back on and smile at like Vic was doing now. I was suddenly overcome with sadness, and Vic seemed to read my expression.

"Let's go" Vic said, taking my hand and pulling me through his house to the kitchen. I looked around the room, it was nice. It was fairly small and cluttered but in a comfortable way, the opposite of my Uncle's kitchen, which was large and empty. I would give anything to live here. There was a table in the middle of the room that was full of ingredients like taco shells and various peppers. "Do you like Tacos?" Vic asked. "Tonight is Taco Night!"

"erm..." I said. I wasn't really used to having things like this, as at home I used to just cook quick things for myself, or order takeout when I had the money. "Yeah, they're good" I muttered, looking away for a distraction. "Is everyone out today?" I asked.

"Yeah, my parents are out for the day and Mike is round Jaime's house. We need to introduce you to him soon, he's our other best friend!" Vic smiled. _Other? _I thought. _Did he just call me his best friend?_

"Yeah, i'd like to meet him, that would be cool" I said.

"Speaking of which, what school are you going to join?" Vic asked. I had forgotten about that, I guess he had beat me to it.

"The local one... I kinda forgot the name" I said, biting my lip and trying to remember it. I was awful with this type of thing.

"Clairemont high?" Vic asked, smiling a little.

"Yeah! That's it" I said. "How did you know?"

"Because that's my school!" Vic smiled. So we'd be going to the same school. Perfect! "I can't wait, you can meet Jaime and Tony, and we might be in the same lessons, and we can walk together, and-"

"Vic! Calm down!" I laughed.

"Sorry" he said, blushing but laughing with me. "I'm just so glad that I can see you in school too". He began blushing even more, and looked away from me.

"I'm really glad too, it will be amazing" I said, and he looked back at me and smiled.

"So, Xbox?" he asked.

"Of course"

Vic's POV

A few hours later, Kellin and I finished another round of Call of Duty. Man, this guy really liked his shooting games! We were just wondering what to do next when we heard the front door open, and in walked my Mother and Father. Kellin sank down a little in his seat on the couch, and for the first time he actually looked as shy as I was. It was quite cute actually that he was nervous about meeting my parents. They walked into the room and saw us sitting on the couch, waving politely to Kellin. Please don't embarass me...

Kellin's POV

"Hey!" Vic's Mum said, waving a little to me. "You must be the Kellin we've heard so much about". _Heard so much about? Vic... had been talking about me?_

"Hey" I awkwardly said, trying my best to smile at her. I could be as rude as I wanted to other people my age and to teachers, but with parents, I just wasn't comfortable. I suppose it was because I hadn't had the best relationship with my own parents, so I wasn't sure how to act towards others. I needed to make a good first impression though so I decided to just be as polite as possible. I knew this would be hard, anyone from where I used to live could tell you that I was not the politest of people. But since moving here, I felt a little different about myself. It was like Vic was bringing out the best in me, and I guess I liked that.

"Kellin, this is Mama and Papa Fuentes. And parents, this is Kellin Quinn" Vic said, motioning to them and then to me.

"Nice to meet you Kellin" Papa Fuentes said, holding out his hand. I timidly took it and shook it, and he laughed kindly. They then went into the kitchen, leaving us to do what we wanted again. Vic helped me up and we began walking upstairs when we heard his Mom call up.

"The Tacos will be ready in about half an hour, boys!" Mama Fuentes shouted.

"Ok, ma!" Vic shouted back, rolling his eyes and laughing. "Let's go to my room".

Vic's room was so different to mine, but I really liked it. He had a wooden bed, chest of drawers and wardrobe, and these were covered in cool stickers and posters. Some of these I recognised, which was a nice surprise. He had several shelves above his headboard and a window with open blinds that showed a clear, but pretty view of the town ahead of it. He had a couple of guitars propped up against the wall. I had no idea he played.

"You play guitar?" I asked, sitting down on his bed.

"Yeah, I have for a while. It's just something to do, you know" he blushed.

"Can I hear?" I asked.

"If you want to... I don't know what to play though..."

"Play anything" I smiled, and he picked up the guitar and sat next to me. He began to strum softly on it, and instantly I knew the song. It was amazing how he recreated it on his guitar. I began quietly singing along, and he looked up at me and smiled, nodding at me. I awkwardly raised my voice a little so that he could hear me clearer.

_"And i'd give up forever to touch you,'cause I know that you'd feel me somehow. You're the closest to heaven that i'll ever be, and I don't want to go home right now"_ I sang. Vic was smiling madly at me now, but still playing. "You want me to carry on?" I asked.

"Yeah, you're really good, keep singing" he said, so I did.

_"And all I can taste is this moment, and all I can breathe is your life. 'Cause sooner or later it's over, I just don't want to miss you tonight"_

I looked at Vic as I sang, and he looked straight back at me. There it was. Electricity. As cliche as that sounded. I could feel something between us, and it was drawing me in.

_"And I don't want the world to see me, 'cause I don't think that they'd understand. When everything's meant to be broken, I just want you to know who I am..."_

I could feel myself instinctively leaning into Vic, I was moving closer. I didn't know why, but I needed to. I needed him. He looked straight back into my eyes as I slowly sang one more line. I just... needed to kiss him. Now. I decided to end this song here, singing the last line as I got closer to him. Closer and closer until I would finally find the happiness I had craved for so long. I looked straight into his eyes as I finished singing.

_"I just want you to... know who I am..."_

The door flew open as Mike burst into the room, shouting "IT'S TACO TIME MOTHERFUCKERS!" and then running out again. Vic and I flew apart, staring at eachother in shock for a moment before he put the guitar down and we quickly and awkwardly walked out of his room. I looked at him infront of me as we walked down the stairs, mentally kicking myself. I had almost kissed him...

We walked downstairs and into the kitchen, where the Fuentes family were all sitting around the table passing around tacos.

"I thought you said half an hour?" Vic asked, as he took his seat. I sat in the one next to him and Mike passed me a taco and I thanked him.

"Yes, well it took less time than I thought" his Mom said.

"What about you, I thought you were staying around Jaime's?" Vic asked, turning to look at Mike.

"Yeah, his Mom isn't well and he needed to look after her so I left" Mike said through mouthfuls.

"Ah..." Vic said, looking at me and then quickly blushing and looking away. Oh god, I had made things awkward now. Why had I done that? I wondered what he thought of me now. He was probably horrified, Vic was far too good for me. I shouldn't have done that. I should **not **have done that.

Vic's POV

I couldn't believe how awkward things were sitting at that table. I kept trying to look at Kellin, picturing the moment upstairs over and over in my mind. Was he going to kiss me? I couldn't tell, it ended too quickly. I thought he was but then Mike burst in and he practically flew across to the other side of my bed. He looked terrified. It was understandable why, but I wished that such a perfect moment hadn't been interrupted. I was wondering how it would have played out. I hoped i'd get another chance to kiss him (if that was even what he was doing?) because I really, really wanted to. And also, his singing voice! He had the most beautiful voice I had ever heard, I never wanted him to stop singing. I decided I would have to try and get him to sing again soon. I needed to hear that again. Even now, his sweet voice was echoing through my ears as we ate. I was ecstatic and disappointed at the same time - ecstatic because I had just discovered something amazing about Kellin, but disappointed because I wanted nothing more than for him to kiss me. I just... needed him to kiss me.

But hey, we had the rest of the night. I guess i'd just see what happened.

_**Hey guys, thanks for reading so far! I'm sorry for the cheesiness of Iris (and the random All American Rejects quote, if anyone got that!), I just couldn't resist. I'd say that Kellin's POV is my comfort zone so I have been trying to write as Vic more... is that going alright for me?**_

_**Thanks for sticking with this story so far, I actually don't have any revision tomorrow night (for once!) so I should hopefully be writing a lot. Please feel free to talk to me or review this fic, it would help me to build on it. Any tips are more than welcome.**_

_**Thanks again! x**_


	4. Chapter 4 - Blood

Chapter Four

Vic's POV

I looked at Kellin, smiling at him as he was trying not to laugh at the youtube video we were watching. We had decided to have a contest to see who could resist laughing for the longest, but I didn't tell him that I had watched this video a million times already. His face was puffing up in concentration as he tried his best to avoid it, but eventually, he couldn't take it anymore. He burst out laughing, throwing his head back and hitting it on my shelf, and then falling to the floor, still laughing. I sat on the edge of my bed, laughing too and looking down at him as he writhed in an uncontrollable laughing fit on my bedroom floor.

"Are you alright?" I laughed. Kellin could barely speak between giggles, and it was making me laugh too.

"I think so" Kellin said, pushing himself to his feet and sitting next to me, rubbing the back of his head cutely.

"That's good" I smiled, looking at him, when I noticed him take his hand off of his head. Blood. "Holy shit Kellin you're bleeding"

"I'm... what?" Kellin said, and I pointed to his hand. He looked at it thoughtfully, recoiling a little when he saw the blood. "Oh shit...". He looked like he was about to pass out, and the colour drained from his face.

"Come on, we need to put something on that, i'll get my Mom to call an ambulance" I said, helping him to his feet. His face turned into a picture of horror and he violently shook his head, then put his hand back on it, wincing. "You... don't want me to call an ambulance?" I asked. He shook his head again, words seemed to have escaped him. "Should I get my parents to drive you to the hospital?" I asked.

"No... no hospital" he said, looking at me seriously. What was so wrong about hospitals?

"Okay then, well we need to sneak you past my parents then cause if they see you like that then they'll force you to go. You need ice on that though so come with me to get some, I don't want you to pass out if I leave you here" I said. I was getting seriously worried about him, I knew I should have moved that shelf sooner. I took his hand, holding it tightly as we walked out of the room. I knew that might be a little awkward, especially considering what happened earlier that same night, but I didn't care. I needed to make sure he was alright. "Squeeze on my hand if you feel like you're going to pass out" I said.

"Okay..." he mumbled, almost silently. We walked out of the door, checking that there was no one in the hallway. I wanted to help him as soon as possible to make sure nothing bad happened to him, so I was hurrying.

Kellin's POV

Vic was dragging me down the hall holding tightly onto my hand, almost to the point of it hurting. But it was distracting me from my head, so I didn't mind. Plus, it was Vic. Holding my hand. My head was killing, the cut was stinging and I had the worst headache i'd had in years. I thought pain didn't really bother me too much, but this was really hurting. I wanted to get to that ice just as much as Vic did. We reached the stairs and Vic looked at me, clearly concerned about if i'd be able to walk down or not. I nodded at him, my head was hurting too much to speak very much. He nodded back but held my arm up, putting it around his shoulders. I felt myself blush madly at this action. I was so close to him and because he was shorter, he was leaning a little into my neck as we walked down. He smelled amazing, and it was making me go into a daze. How was he so perfect?

I realised that if we didn't hurry up I was going to pass out, so I reluctantly stopped concentrating on Vic, and instead concentrated on where I was walking. We reached the bottom and went into the kitchen, luckily there was no one in there. I sat down at the table while Vic got ice from the freezer and he wrapped it in a cloth, passing it to me.

"Thanks" I muttered, holding it to my head. I kept it there for a moment while he watched me carefully, almost as if he was waiting to dive forwards and grab me, should I pass out. When the ice got too intense I took the cloth back off, and looked at it. There was a little blood, but not as much as I had expected.

"Can I look?" Vic asked. I nodded and turned in the chair so that he could look at my head. I felt his hands parting my hair and leaned into his touch, it was distracting me quite well from the pain. "It's not too bad actually" Vic said, stepping back. "Headache?" he asked.

"Yep" I replied, rubbing my head again. He turned and looked in a couple of cupboards before he found some medicine, looking at the packet before he opened it and handed me two pills. "Trying to drug me, are you?" I asked, laughing a little.

"Definitely. Now take them"

"Yes sir"

He handed me some water and I took the pills, and then downed the rest of it. We sat in the kitchen for a further twenty minutes before I started to feel a little better - the pain was subsiding. I just felt a little numb.

"Okay, you've stopped bleeding" Vic concluded, looking at my head again. "Now we just have to go and wash your hair"

"We?" I said, looking at him with an eyebrow raised.

"Yes we, i'm not having you pass out in my bath" he laughed, and took my hand again, leading me upstairs and to the bathroom. We walked into the room and he pulled the curtain back, revealing the bath tub. "Get in and i'll wash it out"

"I'm not your child, just use the shower head and do it over the sink" I replied.

"You're too tall, I won't be able to reach"

"I'll do it myself then"

"You fucking won't" he almost growled. I was a little stunned, Vic was being so direct about this. I knew it was because he was worried about me, he really didn't want me to do anything that could be even a little stressful. He was babying me.

"Sit on the floor then" he said, raising his eyebrows when I didn't immediately oblige. I sighed, rolling my eyes and sitting on the floor, putting my head over the edge of the bath tub. "You only don't want to get in there cause you don't want to get your precious clothes wet" Vic laughed.

"Actually, I haven't had the best of experiences with water lately, if you haven't fucking noticed" I said, and then instantly regretted how that sounded, I hadn't meant to sound so violent, I just wasn't used to people wanting to look after me. Vic looked hurt, that was definitely the wrong thing to say. He ignored me, turning the shower on and beginning to wash through my hair. "...I didn't mean it like that" I said, wishing he would just speak back. He looked hurt and extremely pissed. Shit. He carried on with what he was doing, pretending that he hadn't heard me. He put some strange shampoo into my hair that I instantly recognised the smell of. It smelled of him, and it was amazing. He finished washing my hair and then walked over to the towel rack, throwing me a towel to rub on my hair, and then sat down against the bath next to me.

"I'm sorry Vic, I really didn't mean to say that" I whispered, looking sidewards at him. He carried on looking forwards, avoiding eye contact. I wasn't going to let him ignore me. I put my hand on his cheek, turning his face to look at me. We looked at eachother, and I forgot for a moment to move my hand. It lingered there against the soft skin of his face. His face showed little emotion, just staring back into my own eyes.

"Kellin" he said.

"Yes?"

"Who even are you? You know so much about me now, but I still know barely anything about you. Why were you at the beach that day? Why did you even move here? Why won't you just talk about yourself?" he asked. I felt my heart drop, I really hadn't wanted him to ask me this. I had been avoiding talking about myself because I didn't want him to know about my life. I didn't want Vic to know about any of it. He was so pure, so happy. He didn't need me and the issues I brought with me in his life. I realised what I was thinking - should I even be here? Vic would be fine without me. I was the one without a home, without a family. I was the one that was meant to be alone, I couldn't drag Vic down with me. "Kellin" he repeated.

"I.." I muttered. I didn't know what to say. I couldn't tell him, it would change everything. He'd leave me like everyone else had. I'd lose him. I just couldn't do it. He had become the most important person in my life in such a short time, he meant everything to me. I was just another friend to him, but to me, he was everything I could ever need. The fact was, maybe I wouldn't have minded drowning that day. I had nothing, I had no reason to exist. Vic was my reason now. I couldn't tell him and risk losing him forever.

"I can't tell you" I said, dropping my hand from his face and looking away from him, bringing my legs up to my chest and wrapping my arms around them. I felt so ashamed, but I just couldn't risk it. He would never see me the same.

"Kellin, please" he said, putting his hand on my knee, begging me to look back at him. I turned and caught his eye again, seeing the pleading look on his face. He looked so concerned, and so upset. I didn't want to be the reason Vic felt like that, Vic should never be upset. I wanted to protect him over myself because he meant far more to me. I was so in love with him and I just couldn't handle this any longer. And then I knew I couldn't take it anymore. I moved my hands either side of his face, pulling him towards me and bringing my lips to his. He went tense for a moment, clearly surprised by my actions. I awkwardly pulled back a little but then he wrapped his arms around my neck, bringing me back to him. He kissed me just as passionately as I had kissed him, and it was the best thing I had ever experienced. This was the best I had felt in years, and I never wanted this moment to end. Eventually, we pulled apart, looking at eachother again. Vic's smile faded and he looked at me as he had before, upset and concerned.

"I'm so sorry Vic" I said, bringing my arms down from his face to timidly resting them around his waist.

"Don't you trust me?" he asked.

"You know I trust you Vic, more than anyone. You mean everything to me but I just can't tell you yet" I said, feeling tears begin to form in my eyes. I hadn't cried in years, what was wrong with me? I knew exactly what was wrong. I had kept these feelings locked up for such a long time, and they were all threatening to break out at once. I couldn't do this now, I wasn't strong enough. Vic noticed and frowned again, bringing me close to him. He wrapped his arms around me, resting them on my back and letting me put my head against his chest. It was a little awkward because I was taller, but he smelled good and his arms were making me feel safe, so I didn't care if it was uncomfortable.

"...You don't have to tell me" Vic said, holding me close to him. "I trust you, if this is difficult for you, I won't ask"

"I'll tell you one day, soon. I promise. I just can't yet" I said, holding onto him tightly.

"When you're ready" he said.

"Yeah.. i'm sorry"

"Don't apologise, it's my fault for asking when you're clearly not comfortable about it" Vic said, sighing a little. I pulled out of his grasp, looking at him.

"Nothing is your fault Vic, you could never do anything wrong" I said.

"Kellin, you don't have to be like that. I know I saved you but it's okay to admit i'm still not the best of people, especially for you". I couldn't believe what I was hearing.

"Vic, you're perfect. Nothing is wrong with you at all, I don't know what i'd do without you" I assured him.

"No one's really said that to me before" he said.

"Everyone should"

"I think you really underestimate yourself, Kellin. I don't know what's happened to you to make you doubt yourself so much, but you're just as good as I am. Infact, you're far better than me. But I understand that something has happened to you and I just want to help you" Vic said, leaning towards me and smiling, before kissing me lightly on the forehead.

"You're helping me just by being here" I said.

"Then i'm never going to leave you, no matter what, Kellin. You matter to me" he replied. All I wanted to do was cry, Vic was the first person that had ever said such kind words to me. I wasn't ready to cry yet though, so I avoided it and instead pulled Vic towards me, holding him in my arms. My life had been terrible, but meeting Vic was definitely the best thing that had ever happened to me. I had been blessed to meet him, and to even be this close to him seemed out of this world. Why me? Vic could get anyone he wanted.

He wrapped his arms around me again, looking up at me. We stared at eachother for a moment, in a trance with eachother. He then brought his lips to mine once more, but slowly this time. A slow, sweet kiss. It was the sweetest thing in the world. And then we just sat there with our arms around eachother for what felt like forever afterwards. I wanted it to be forever. The broken boy and his perfect best friend, side by side, holding eachother on the bathroom floor - knowing that things were changing for us. I just hoped that it was a good change, because all I wanted was to spend my life with Vic.

_**I hope you all liked that, this is NOT the end! I plan on trying to make this quite long as most of my fics don't make it past 8 chapters. I have a lot of plans for this fic, some surprises, and some things that you should all like. Thank you for sticking with this so far, reviews are more than welcome, they make me smile :') **_

_**Chapter 5 should be up either tomorrow (21/2/13) or within the next few days, depending on how much work i'm doing. I'd like to make this an important project of mine - all the Kellic feels! ;_; Thanks again for reading x**_


	5. Chapter 5 - Shop

Chapter Five

Vic's POV

Things with Kellin were... different. We hadn't mentioned that we had kissed since that night, and it was now Sunday. He'd be joining my school tomorrow. Personally, I had really enjoyed kissing him - it just felt so right. But now I didn't know what to feel. Of course I was sure that I was still in love with him, but did he even feel the same? He could've just kissed me for the sake of it or something. I didn't understand why he wasn't mentioning it, like nothing even happened. It hurt.

Kellin's POV

_Sunday morning, time to get up and actually do something! _I thought, getting up out of bed. It had been a few days now since I had stayed round Vic's house. I thought back to that night and everything that had happened. When we had finally decided to get out of the bathroom and do something, we had gone back up to Vic's room (no, not like that. Sadly). Things were a little awkward at first, we were clearly both happy but confused at the same time. We didn't really know what we were meant to do now. We ended up just watching films until late, until we eventually fell asleep. Vic fell asleep with his head against my shoulder - he was so cute when he was asleep. Things changed in the morning though. We were obviously still thinking about the night before but we didn't say anything to eachother about it, and we just carried on as if nothing had happened. I hadn't really felt like this before so I didn't know what to do, and I had a feeling I upset Vic a little by not saying anything. I decided I would make it up to him.

I knew that Vic was spending the day with his family today - our first day apart since we had met. I had no idea what to do with myself. I guessed I should probably go into the town and try and get supplies for school - I may as well start positively for once. Afterall, this was meant to be my fresh start. I got dressed and ate a pop tart, downing coffee and then leaving the house. I walked into the town square and looked around, looking for something to do. I noticed a music shop and decided that this was probably the best shop I was going to find in such a small town, so I went there first.

I walked in the door, eyes scanning the different genres of music before I found my favourite section. I looked at the shelf, smiling a little as the cds from some of my favourite bands stood out to me. At least I knew where i'd come to when new ones were released.

"Hey!" I heard a shout, looking towards where the noise came from. The manager of the shop was standing in the stock room doorway, shouting in to whoever was in there. He stepped back as a guy walked out, looking at him in a smug but pissed way. "I thought I told you to restring those guitars?"

"Well, yes, you did" the other guy said. He was clearly some sort of assistant that worked for the manager. He had spiked black hair and was wearing a uniform top with black skinny jeans. He caught my eye and smirked, and I awkwardly looked away. "But I have other priorities first" he said. Wow, he sounded like me. Like he really didn't give a shit.

"For the last time Jaime. If you don't do the work I give you, you can go and find a job somewhere else" the man said, sternly. Jaime? I looked at the guy again, why was that name familiar to me? I didn't think I had seen him anywhere before.

"I'll get it done now" 'Jaime' said, grabbing a box of supplies and one of the guitars, and sitting down on a chair in the corner, laying it across his lap. I looked back to the shelf, trying to carry on browsing. He started humming to himself and it was really distracting, I just couldn't place why he seemed familiar to me. I crossed the room to be a bit further from him, looking up at the posters being displayed on the wall.

"Looking for something?" came a voice from behind me. Holy shit, how had he moved across the room that fast? I hadn't even heard him put down the guitar.

"No, just browsing, thanks" I said, smiling at him and then looking away again.

"I haven't seen you around here before" he said.

"Yeah, I moved here just over a week ago" I replied.

"Nice, well welcome then. I'm Jaime" he smiled. "And you are?"

"Kellin"

"Kellin... ha! I know who you are! Fuck, I can't remember the last name... It began with Q?"

"Quinn... how did you know that?" I asked, raising one eyebrow at him.

"You'll see soon enough" he laughed, walking back across the room and pulling the guitar back onto his lap. I lingered for a moment before nodding at him, smirking and making my way to the door. "See you soon, Kellin" he laughed.

"...Yeah..." I said, walking out.

As weird as that encounter was, I didn't let it throw me. I still had stuff I needed to do today. I carried on shopping, stopping at a few shops to get new pens, paper and other necesarry things. When I got tired of this I went to a coffee shop, ordering a latte and sitting down at the back where there were less people. I found myself looking at my phone - well, Vic's number on my phone. I had taken a picture of him a few days ago and it was now his contact picture, and I was just staring at it, taking in his appearance. Why hadn't I done anything about it when I had him? It was probably too late now, I acted like I was rejecting him and he was probably over it by now. Maybe he didn't like me anymore as much as he had. I sighed_. _I always managed to fuck everything up. But at least he wasn't gone, we were still extremely close. But we just weren't together, and that's what I wanted.

Vic's POV

I realised that today wasn't the same without Kellin here. I used to love family days, I still did, but it just felt like something was missing. I loved my family, but it was like Kellin was part of it now. And he wasn't here. I decided next time i'd talk to my parents about it and try to get them to let Kellin come with us. They liked him anyway, he was polite to them in his own awkward way. There was still a lot I didn't understand about Kellin, I had no idea what had happened to him before he moved here, but whatever it was, it was serious. He seemed damaged by it. I was happy that he was comfortable with me though, even if he wasn't ready to tell me yet. I'd find out one day and I trusted him anyway. It's not like he murdered someone or anything. I think.

We were out getting lunch at the moment and I was watching Mike attempting to eat a footlong sub - he always ate a lot. It was quite funny how much he was trying to eat at one time. I kept looking at my phone to see if Kellin had texted me, but I had nothing. I didn't want to text him first because I was scared of being clingy, especially since every day after the incident I had texted him in the morning to make sure he was okay. I wondered how he was coping with the memory of it - could he even remember it at all? I was still having dreams about it every so often, but I had learnt to cope with it. I was doing my best to get more sleep and to not eat cheese before bed and all that. I knew I was having these dreams because I cared about Kellin and I was worried about him. I just wanted to know what was troubling him all the time. He would occasionally space out or fall silent, especially infront of my family. My Mom had asked me if Kellin had been feeling okay yesterday when he was round mine, since he had been so quiet the whole time. I hoped the fact that we had kissed wasn't troubling him, because I had loved it and to be honest, I definitely wanted to do it again. But I didn't know if he did.

Things might be a bit different at school. This felt like a sort of 'summer romance' scenario, and because of no school, we had been able to see eachother for long periods of each day. With the stress of school back, would we grow apart? I really hoped not, but this thought was eating at me. I knew I needed to do something to make sure Kellin wouldn't drift from me - as possessive as that sounded. I wondered what he'd think of Jaime and Tony, I knew they'd like him. Who wouldn't?

Soon, the day was over and we were on our way home. When I got in I went to my room, doing all the homework I had been set at the very last minute. Before I went to sleep I decided I needed to text Kellin, I didn't care if it was clingy. We hadn't spoken all day and I missed him.

To Kellin: Hey! Ready for your first day tomorrow?

From Kellin: I think so... it's going to be different though :|

To Kellin: Different how?

From Kellin: I'm just not good at coping with new things. People aren't going to like me and I guess i'm freaking out a little...

To Kellin: Why wouldn't people like you? I know my friends will. And you know that i'll be there to help you cope. :)

From Kellin: It doesn't matter, and thank you, i'm glad you're going to be there, it will make it a lot easier.

To Kellin: No problem. I told you, i'll always be there.

From Kellin: Ditto. So am I still walking with you tomorrow?

To Kellin: Of course. :) I'll meet you at 8 at the usual place?

From Kellin: Yeah :) Okay i'm going to sleep now, see you at eight x

_Whoa, okay, a kiss. Did that count as progress?_ I decided to just copy him.

To Kellin: yeah, night x

I undressed down to my boxers and got into bed, putting my phone on charge next to me. Tomorrow was going to be an eventful day, I needed sleep tonight. If the dreams didn't come back.

_**Hey guys, this chapter was a bit boring I think, but I promise it's about to get interesting...**_

_**Also, I have started doing artwork for this fic! I will include links to it in the next chapter, or check on my Tumblr .com and I may have posted it on there by the time you read this. I have four pieces at the moment but I will be drawing more. Thanks for reading this chapter, I should be writing more over the weekend! x**_


	6. Chapter 6 - School

_**Hey guys! I'm so sorry for the slow update... some stuff has been going on (I won't get into it) but I will be trying my best to update as quickly as possible because the support i'm getting from you all in regards to this story is amazing, and I really appreciate it. I need to get back into the swing of writing so I apologise if this chapter sucks D: **_

_**Thanks for reading!**_

Chapter 6

Kellin's POV

Time passed far too quickly throughout the night, and soon, it was 7am. Time to start getting ready for my first day of my new school. I reluctantly threw myself sidewards out of my bed, landing face down on the floor. Well, at least that woke me up. It was far too early for my liking and I sulked a little as I made my way into my bathroom, looking up at myself in the big mirror on the wall. I was only wearing boxers because it was often quite hot at night, and I noted that I was starting to look a little different. I was a bit bigger than I had been before, but that was a good thing because I was quite skinny anyways. I think the only person skinnier than me was Vic, but it suited him. I had a few bruises and scars scattered across my body, but these were normal. Everyone had scars. The bad memories could sometimes be the most important ones to remember, for many reasons.

My hair was a mess - how was it even possible to get so bad overnight? It looked like I had stuck my head out a car window on a motorway. I decided to take a quick shower. I stepped under the warm spray, closing my eyes and enjoying how inviting the warmth of the water was. When I had showered I got out and dried myself off, and then looked back in the mirror again. Now my hair just looked soppy. I combed it into the right position and then walked into my bedroom, getting dressed and drying my hair until it looked right. I chose to wear a black and white striped vest, a denim vest jacket, a beanie and black skinnies. I knew i'd look different because all the people at the school probably dressed similarly to Vic, but I didn't think i'd be comfortable wearing that sort of stuff, and when I was little my Mom always said to wear what I was comfortable in.

I brushed my teeth and picked up my bag - for once in my life I had actually prepared everything the night before. I even had my schedule that I had been sent, and I knew that my first lesson today would be Chemistry. Not exactly an interesting start, but it was happening whether I liked it or not. I walked down the stairs and into the kitchen, listening out for any noises in the house. My suspicions were confirmed when I sat down at the table and checked my phone - where I found a text from my Uncle saying that he hadn't been able to get home to see me before my first day. I politely (well, as politely as I could...) texted him saying it was fine, and then had some breakfast. I checked the time - it was ten to eight. I'd have to leave in a minute to meet Vic.

I was definitely nervous about my first day. I wondered what everyone was going to be like - especially Vic's friends. I could be as rude as I wanted to anyone outside of their group that made fun of me (and I intended to!), but I couldn't be rude to Vic's friends. Vic was all I had, and I needed to keep them on my side in order to keep him there too. I was never good with first impressions and from previous experiences, i'd say that I had about a 95% chance of them hating my guts by lunchtime. I needed to not blow this, but I wasn't exactly the most social person. I couldn't even remember the names Vic had told me. At least I already knew Vic and Mike. Mike was awesome, every so often he would join Vic and I when we went out somewhere, but only when he wasn't spending time with his girlfriend. They spent as much time together as Vic and I did, and Mike really loved her. It made me think about how Vic felt about me. I shook my head, sighing to myself. I shouldn't still be thinking about that kiss. It was over and done with, nothing had happened and nothing was going to. I needed to concentrate on being Vic's friend.

Speaking of which, I was late! It was 3 minutes to 8 so I quickly left the house, locking the door and putting the key in my pocket. I sprinted down the street and around several corners, only slowing down when there was one corner left. I then subtly fixed my hair, clearing my throat and getting ready for the day ahead of me. I turned the corner.

There was Vic, standing with Mike and two other guys that I didn't recognise. No, wait... I did recognise one. Now I understood what he had meant that day. I walked over, saying hey to them each in turn before I reached him.

"Hey Kellin" he laughed.

"Hey Jaime"

Vic looked a little shocked - he hadn't introduced us yet. Jaime and I laughed in unison at his reaction. "You already know eachother?" he asked.

"Yeah, we already met earlier this week" Jaime laughed, and we began walking. There was only really space for two people to stand side by side on the sidewalk, so Tony and Jaime were infront, Mike was directly behind them talking, and Vic and I were a bit further back. Vic seemed to be walking purposely slow, as if he was trying to fall back and lose them a little.

"So..." Vic said.

"So?"

"You and Jaime already know eachother? I didn't realise you guys were friends" Vic muttered, trying to seem like he wasn't bothered by it at all, but merely curious. I saw right through it - I wasn't too bad at reading people. He was jealous!

"Yeah, we met before when you were spending time with your family, I went to town and into the shop that he works at" I explained, leaving out the fact that we had barely spoken at all and hadn't since.

"Oh, that's cool" Vic said, looking away for a distraction. Wow, this was getting to him. I could have sworn I heard him growl a little in frustration when I was explaining. This was fun. I'd have to see just how far I could push him with this.

Vic's POV

I coughed a little, looking away at anything else. You know you've reached a new level of embarassment when you _growl _at something your friend says, when you're supposed to be acting like it doesn't bother you. The truth was, it did bother me. A lot. I guess you could say I was jealous. Jaime had been one of my best friends for a long time so of course I wasn't mad at him, but why had he not told me that him and Kellin already knew eachother? There shouldn't have really been a problem for me to have with that - they were going to meet eachother anyway. But the one day I didn't see Kellin because I was with my family, he had to go and meet Jaime! It was just the fact that Kellin had been my thing! I was the one that had met him first, I was going to introduce him to everyone, and I would always be the one he was closest to. But now he already knew Jaime. I wondered just how much they knew eachother. I was starting to get really paranoid now - maybe that was why Kellin had dismissed the fact that we kissed? Did Jaime do something? Have they been meeting up? No. Jaime was straight, and Kellin and I had spent every other day together.I knew I was just paranoid because I was protective of Kellin, but I couldn't help it.

Eventually we reached the school just as the bell rang, and we all said goodbye and headed off to our lessons. I was really hoping that Kellin would be all of mine, especially his first one. I wanted to be there to see the reaction of everyone when he walked in. He was very different to a lot of people here, even though it was a fairly mixed school. He was going to be like marmite to these people - they would either love him, or hate his guts. I didn't know which option I hated more. I mentally slapped myself for being controlling again and looked at his timetable, pleased to see that we did infact have the same lesson. Not all of our lessons were the same, but this one was.

The teacher was standing outside the room watching as students made their way in, so I told Kellin I would save him a seat while he explained to the teacher who he was, and I went inside to wait for him. I went to my usual desk at the back with the vacant seat next to me, that Kellin would soon be occupying. Students filed in and took their seats and eventually, Kellin and the teacher entered the room. I was expecting a huge reaction when he walked in, but I was left a little disappointed. People raised their heads and studied him for a few seconds before focusing on getting out their books - he wasn't really paid attention to much. I didn't understand why - this was Kellin fucking Quinn! He was gorgeous. I noticed him looking at me, obviously checking that I was still here. He finished talking to the teacher and walked over to me, sitting down next to me and slinging his bag onto the table. He got out a notebook and a pen and began doodling as the teacher spoke.

"Not gonna take notes?" I asked quietly, making sure that I wasn't being heard by the rest of the class.

"No way man" Kellin laughed quietly. "School and I don't mix"

"So why are you bothering to be here then?" I asked. He looked at me, smirking a little.

"Is that a way of telling me you want me to leave?" he asked me.

"No, of course not. I'm not gonna sit here bored without you" I replied.

"Maybe I'm just here for your benefit then, just for your entertainment" he smirked, winking at me and nudging my arm a little. Well if he was here for my entertainment, he was doing a good job. Especially at distracting me. How on earth was this guy even single?

"Maybe you are, you better keep it up then" I said, not looking back at him but smiling.

"Oh I will".

Kellin's POV

Soon, the lesson was over and I was on my way to the next one. It was maths, and it was a different class to Vic's. I reluctantly said bye to him and made my way there, hesitating before asking if a seat was available next to a girl in the class. She awkwardly nodded and gestured towards the chair, letting me sit next to her. She was quite short and blonde with green eyes, at least, I think they were green. She didn't make eye contact with me for the rest of the lesson and didn't speak a word, and the second the bell rang, she practically flew out the door. Hmmm, not much of a social person then. I guess I could relate, but she seemed the shy type. I wasn't the shy type - I was the violent type. I pushed the thoughts of my past school experiences out of my head and focused on collecting my stuff together and leaving the classroom to find Vic and the others.

I got food from the cafe and walked outside into the courtyard, and there I found Vic, Jaime and Tony sitting at a bench in the corner. I took a seat on the edge next to Vic, and he smiled at me because I had clearly picked sitting next to him over sitting next to Jaime. It would have been interesting if I hadn't, but I wouldn't do that to him. Mike followed not long after and sat opposite me, and then we were all there. I ate quickly and subtly - I didn't really like people to see me eat. We then talked for a while and listened to music, before I heard a voice from behind me and turned around to see the source.

"Hey new kid" a guy said. He was wearing baggy jeans and a football shirt, and smiling smugly at me with two followers behind him. I knew the type far too well. Bad news.

"You called?" I replied sarcastically.

"You don't look Mexican!" he laughed. What did he mean?

"What?" I asked. "Why would I need to look Mexican?"

"Because you're with them, haven't you noticed you're hanging with the Mexican freaks of the school?" he laughed. I felt Vic nudge my arm, holding onto it a little.

"Pretend you didn't hear them, ignore them Kellin..." Vic muttered under his breath. I ignored his advice and replied to him, I had a thing for getting myself into trouble.

"And why should the fact that they're Mexican and I'm not affect whether we're friends or not?" I asked.

"Kellin, don't..." Vic said. "Eric just go away!"

"Oh I get it, is pretty boy your boyfriend, Vic? I didn't realise he went for dirty scum like all of you" 'Eric' laughed. Before I knew what I was doing, I had risen out of my seat and began to charge at him. I heard the others call after me, and Vic desperately tried to pull me back, but I shrugged him off.

"Do you want to say that again?" I asked, standing in Eric's face. He didn't answer but simply smiled at me, so I repeated myself. "I said, do you, want to FUCKING say that again?" I shouted, stepping closer towards him.

"I hope you boys aren't about to get yourselves into trouble, you know the rules" a voice said. We both looked to the side to see the deputy head staring at us, shaking his head. He made no reaction towards Eric's racist comment, but was clearly only making sure that no violence took place. I had to hold myself back from punching Eric clean across the face.

"Of course not sir, I was just welcoming the new kid" Eric sarcastically smiled at him, then turned back to look at me. "See you later, pretty boy" he winked, and then him and his two douchebags walked away with the teacher walking off after them.

"Kellin?" Vic said, looking at me with concern in his eyes.

"Why the fuck did you let him talk to you like that?" I asked.

"It's just an ongoing thing. He's not worth it" Tony said.

"Well I swear to god if it happens again I don't give a fuck who's watching, I'll beat the shit out of him, fucking prick" I spat, sitting down angrily at the table. The others sat back down with me, clearly surprised at my outburst. It was silent for a moment before Vic spoke again.

"I know you're just trying to help, Kellin, but it's us he's targeting. You just came here, just stay out of it. You don't deserve the shit he dishes out"

"Not if he's hurting you. I mean... all of you. We're all friends now, right? My friends come first, and some stupid guy isn't going to treat them like shit like that" I replied.

"I understand that but please, just try and drop it?" Vic reasoned.

"Only if he does. If he tries that again, I swear to you i'm not holding myself back"

The rest of the day dragged, we had quite an early lunch here so there was still two more lessons before the end of the day. None of these were with Vic, but luckily, none were with Eric either. I couldn't stand to be in the same room as him. How dare he target Vic and the others like that! At least the last lesson I had was with Tony, and we just talked and listened to music sharing headphones the whole time.

Vic's POV

I saw a new side to Kellin today. A much more... violent side. He looked like he was about to beat the shit out of Eric, and if he hadn't been interrupted, he probably would have. I had never seen him like this - it was so weird and out of the ordinary. But in an odd way it suited him, kind of as if it was his real personality. I knew he wouldn't ever treat me like that - we were best friends and he had already stuck up for me. But it was so different, and the anger seemed to come so easily to Kellin. Like he was used to it. I knew somehow this linked to whatever he wasn't telling me. Something about his life before. I'd find out one day but for now, i'd need to keep Kellin out of trouble. He came here for a fresh start and a new beginning - he really didn't need to be the newest addition to Eric's hit-list. Because I knew that once he was on it, he would remain on it. Just like I had for the past three years. Constant bullying. Constant racism. It made it harder that he was targeting Mike too, I just wanted to protect my younger brother. I wasn't about to drag Kellin into this too, just because he felt the need to protect me. I should be the one protecting him, and that's what i'd do.

That's why when I met up with him at the end of the day, I said nothing about being shoved into a wall in the hallway on the way there. I kept it quiet all of the walk home, and all of the time we were texting that night. These 'attacks' or whatever you wanted to call them, would remain silent and hidden from Kellin. I had to keep him away from this, this was the one awful thing about my life, and I wasn't going to share this with him. They weren't as often as they used to be anymore anyways, infact, today was the first time in months I had been physically assaulted. It was probably because they got a reaction - usually we would ignore it. I had to keep Kellin's temper under control or both of us would suffer the consequences. Even if it meant pretending like everything was okay.

_**I hope you liked that, I apologise if it sucked. I will try and write more tomorrow and post it, but i'm really sorry if I don't manage to. When things are a bit calmer I should have more free time to do this, but I will try my best. Please review if you haven't already so that I can see what you all think - if there's anything I can do better, go ahead and tell me. :)**_

_**And since someone asked, my tumblr is **_

_**punkasgard**_

_**Feel free to follow me and talk to me, I love meeting new people and if you like Kellic, I already like you! Thanks for reading x **_


	7. Chapter 7 - Gym

Chapter 7

Kellin's POV

It had been three weeks since I had started attending Clairemont High. Not much had happened to be perfectly honest, but I was happy. I had been completely accepted into our group - Jaime, Mike and Tony seemed to really like me and I had established strong friendships with them. There had been a few 'behaviour issues' occasionally, but it was nothing compared to how I used to be. I was changing. Things were finally looking up for me. The only thing that remained negative was the actions taken by Eric and his friends. They seemed to just be the school bullies - causing trouble for everyone. But the racism my friends were recieving was out of line, and I was reaching breaking point. Eric knew this too well, he would pick on the others and watch me get angry about it. As far as I knew, he was at least staying away mostly. I hadn't seen him do anything recently, but still, Vic seemed to be acting differently. I had kept a lot of secrets from even my own mother over the years, I could tell when I was being decieved. Something was happening to Vic, and all I could do was stay with him and be there for support. I had no right to get into his personal business - especially since he still didn't know mine. I would tell him one day, though.

It was a Thursday today and my alarm clock rang far too soon for my liking. I was shattered and I wanted nothing more than to bury myself under my covers and remain there for the rest of the month. Or year. I felt so warm and safe. The only thing that could have improved that moment was if a certain little Mexican was cuddling there with me. All in good time.

I finally convinced myself to get out of bed and rushed to get dressed as I felt the cold morning air greet my skin. Once I was dressed, I went into my bathroom and looked into the mirror. I combed my hair into the right position and brushed my teeth, putting on deodrent and a beanie on my head. I then grabbed my bag and went downstairs, pouring some cereal and munching on it while scrolling through my twitter. Vic had posted a couple of cute tweets - apparently he was cold getting out of bed this morning too. Winter wasn't too far away, I knew that the weather was going to get worse. Vic had been tweeting for at least an hour already, and I considered the time now to be early. How did he even do that? I wondered if Mike got up at the same time as him. Maybe it was a family thing.

I picked up some money that my Uncle had left on the counter - apparently he had been home last night. I sat around for a bit until it was time to go and then left to go and meet everyone. When I arrived, I was greeted by several bro-fists and smiles. We talked about just about everything on the way, and I listened as Tony told me about the new songs he had been teaching himself the previous night. This guy was a born musician, why wasn't he in a band yet?

The school day passed normally, and soon it was fourth lesson. Lunch was after this. I arrived in the classroom and sat down at my usual place, looking at the seat next to me expectantly, waiting for Vic. He was usually the one to arrive on time, what was keeping him?

Vic's POV

I always pick the wrong places to walk. I didn't want to be late to fourth lesson because I couldn't wait to talk to Kellin about some things that had happened last night, so I had taken a short cut through the gym. I didn't think that Eric and his friends would be smoking in there. They shouted at me to join them as I was walking past, and I tried to ignore them. But then they got more aggressive so I reluctantly stood by them, keeping my distance. The smell of the smoke was disgusting, and their personalities fit that description too.

"Where are you going?" Eric asked.

"um... math" I said, deciding to keep it as nice as possible, and then maybe they'd leave me alone.

"Hmm, isn't your boyfriend going to walk you there?"

"My boyfriend?"

"That Kellin guy. Oh I see, he's not here to protect you today? What a... pity" Eric laughed. I became very aware that they were slowly surrounding me. This was not good.

Kellin's POV

Where the fuck was Vic? Lesson had started ten minutes ago, and he had already been marked absent on the register. What worried me a little was that one of Eric's friends that was in this class had always been marked absent. I wondered if Eric was in his class or not. I sat in silence for another ten minutes, attempting to text Vic without the teacher seeing my phone. Then the door of the classroom slammed open, and I looked up instantly, fearing the worst.

A girl that looked about thirteen was standing there, clearly out of breath from running. She had blonde curly hair and big glasses that kept falling down her nose as she spoke.

"Sir! There's a fight happening in the gym! Quickly! Help!" she shouted. Before the teacher could even react to her I was sprinting past him and out of the door. I heard him call after me but there was no way I was going to stop and get back. I had a bad feeling, and I knew that Vic needed me. I ran to the gym and threw the doors open, looking around quickly before my eyes settled on the scene infront of me. Eric was standing above Vic as he was kneeling on the floor, clutching at his nose - which was dripping blood all over the floor. Vic was screwing his face up in pain - it had obviously just happened. Eric's stupid friends were standing behind Vic, laughing at him. Eric stepped closer to Vic but then froze as he caught sight of me. He stepped away again and smiled at me, and his friends did the same.

"Ah, so you are here after all" Eric grinned. "I thought for a second you were just going to leave your boyfriend here"

"Get the fuck away from him" I said, and Eric didn't move. I stepped closer and closer until I was right in Eric's face, grasping onto the collar of his shirt. "I said, fuck off Eric"

"No thanks" he laughed, pulling away and then slapping me swiftly, hard across the face. I closed my eyes and stumbled backwards as I felt it sting and I heard Vic shout my name. I was shocked when I felt a hand on my shoulder, and then I realised it was Vic. He was standing up again and looking stronger than I had seen him before - staring Eric in the face.

"Don't you fucking touch Kellin" Vic warned. He then lowered his voice to whisper to me. "Let's just get out of here, I don't want to fight him Kellin"

"Or what? What is a dirty little Mexican prick like you going to do?"

Sorry Vic, but I lost it. I punched Eric as hard as I could across the face and he fell to the floor, just as our teacher and several students walked into the room. There was a loud gasp as Eric hit the floor and once he realised he had an audience he remained laying there, faking far more pain than I had caused. But it didn't matter to me. He had got what he deserved for hurting my Vic.

"What is the meaning of this?" the teacher shouted. He walked over and helped Eric up, and then looked sternly at the three of us, ignoring Eric's stupid friends. "You three, my office, now!" he commanded, storming out of the room with us trailing behind him. As we walked I grinned evilly at Eric, leaning in close to him.

"You try and touch Vic or any other friends of mine again... and I will make your life pure hell"

I winked as I saw a picture of horror on his face, and then walked ahead with Vic next to me. He was holding his nose as it was still bleeding quite badly. It hurt me to see him in pain, more than my face was stinging. Once we reached the office, our teacher handed Vic a tissue and he thanked him.

"Do you want to explain what happened here?" the teacher asked. All three of us sat down in the chairs and remained silent. "Speak up! Eric, did you cause this again?" he asked.

"No! I was simply helping Vic to his class when Kellin walked in" Eric said as innocently as possible. What a fucking liar.

"Yes, and I just happened to walk in when you were fucking reconstructing Vic's face" I spat. "Look what the fuck you did to him!"

"This was you?" the teacher asked Eric, pointing at Vic, who remained silent and looking down at the floor. Eric looked around for an excuse but couldn't find a sufficient or believable one, so simply nodded. So he wasn't so intimidating without an audience then.

"Very well. And you're all aware that violence is not tolerated at Clairemont High? You know about our anti-bullying policy?" the teacher questioned us. We nodded in unison. "Well alright then. Eric, three hours after school detention. Vic and Kellin, one hour. And this better not happen again. Understood?". Vic and I both smiled as we saw Eric's face drop in shock. We were released from the office and Eric stormed off while Vic and I looked at eachother in triumph. We decided to skip the rest of the lesson and went down to the storage room, sitting on one of the tables and talking.

"Victory!" I shouted as we sat down.

"Thanks for helping me" Vic blushed.

"No problem, you know I always will. Thanks for sticking up for me too" I replied.

"It was nothing. We're in this together" he smiled.

"Yep, because I got you and you got me" I laughed.

"Definitely" Vic said, and then his whole mood seemed to change. His smiled faded and his expression changed to one of pure want. He smiled at me once more and then leaned in slowly, bringing his lips to mine. The kiss was so soft that I wasn't even sure if it was real. I felt like I was floating on air. He pulled away again, blushing a little. "Was that okay?" he asked.

"I don't know, let's try it again" I grinned, pulling him closer to me and kissing him again - a lot more intense this time. I felt a warm feeling rush through me, and I felt happy. Really happy. We stayed like that for a few moments before pulling apart again.

"Kellin?" Vic said.

"Yes?"

"Can we not drop it this time? I don't think I can go through that again"

"Of course we won't, I can't either"

And I meant it. It was about time this happened. I was ecstatic. I decided that we needed to be closer, and he needed to know that I cared about him. Tomorrow I would tell him. Everything. Everything that I had been hiding about my past. I would invite him round, and I would tell him all of it. Every last detail. I couldn't ruin today by doing it now, but tomorrow he would finally know. He would know exactly what was wrong with me, and how no matter how much he saved me, I would never be deserving of him. I owed him an explanation at the least, especially since he was finally mine. Vic Fuentes and Kellin Quinn. What was better than that?


	8. Chapter 8 - House

Chapter 8

Vic's POV

Time passed and the bond between Kellin and I only grew stronger. We had never actually said that we were 'together', but Kellin wasn't the best at showing his emotions anyway. We both knew how we felt, and that was all that mattered. It had been a few weeks and we had managed to keep things secret. We would meet for a couple of lessons a week in the music room to talk and spend time together, and we practically lived around each other's houses. We were inseperable. I still didn't know anything about Kellin's past, though. It was eating at me, I really wanted to know why he thought it was so bad. He had said that he would tell me one day, but things had happened and he had just left it. I hoped he wouldn't leave it for much longer - I knew that I would love him no matter what he said to me, but it would stop me worrying about it.

I also wanted to tell the others about Kellin and I. We had agreed not to for a while and Kellin seemed content with this, but I hated lying to my friends and family. At least if Mike knew i'd have someone to talk to about this. I considered telling him but then I felt like I would be betraying Kellin by doing this. He obviously wasn't ready for people to know and I wanted to do all that I could to make him happy.

Today was a Saturday and I was spending it with my family. I knew i'd skype Kellin later and talk to him, so I wasn't really worried about that.

Kellin's POV

"Kellin, I'm going to work so lock up when you leave later, okay?" my Uncle asked.

"Yes sir" I said, smiling as politely as I could as I watched him leave. That was our social interaction for the week then, I loved being so close. So now I just had the day to myself, I wondered what I should do. I decided to go into town, i'm sure i'd find something worth doing there. Plus, it was a saturday so Jaime would be working in the music shop today. I could always go and visit him.

I was already dressed so I picked up some money from the counter and left a little while later, making sure that the house was locked and the key was in my pocket. The walk was quite uneventful, but I noticed that it was starting to get much colder outside. I didn't even know if it snowed here during the winter or not. I hoped so, I didn't care for the hot weather much. Not as much as Vic, anyway.

Once I reached the town I went into a convinience store and looked at the magazines and various products before buying a Mountain Dew and gum. I then walked down the long strip of shops, looking for something to do. I went in a few stores but didn't buy much, nothing was really interesting to me. I settled for going into a cafe and having a coffee, and I ended up spending most of my time using the free wifi in there. I wondered what Vic was doing.

Vic's POV

Today was fun, Mike and I went to see a movie and then spent the rest of the day in the arcade. When we arrived home, I went straight into my room and turned on my laptop, logging into skype. I put some music on and began browsing on twitter and tumblr while I waited for Kellin to log on. It was late afternoon, so he probably wouldn't be on for a while yet anyway. That was okay though.

Kellin's POV

_Get home, right now._

The text looked serious. But what could I have done? My Uncle seemed like he was really mad at me, but why? There wasn't much I could mess up when I hadn't been home all day. I decided to obey orders and left the cafe. I walked home fairly quickly and when I reached the house, I was shocked to see a police car in the driveway. It brought back awful memories and I shuddered a little as I walked past it and approached the house. The door was wide open so I walked straight in, and couldn't believe the scene before my eyes.

The house was in ruins. Clothes and belongings were strewn across the floor, tables were overturned and the windows were smashed. The door leading out into the garden was smashed into several wooden shards, and it became clear what had happened here. We had been robbed, and it looked like they had taken a lot. My Uncle looked up at me angrily as I entered the room, and silently watched me as I took in the scene. He looked devastated but furious at the same time. There were two police officers walking around the room looking at our belongings. When he noticed me standing there, one of them walked over to me, shaking my hand.

"Hello, I'm Officer Lawson, and this is my collegue Detective Barham" he said, motioning to the other man. "We need to ask you a few questions about what has happened here today"

"Okay?" I replied. I didn't want to talk to some stupid police officer. How was I meant to know about any of this?

"Well, did you let anyone into this house?" he asked.

"Of course not! I'm not stupid!" I objected.

"Did you see anyone hanging around here?"

"No, I didn't!"

"And where were you today?"

"I was in town, okay? I had no idea about this" I defended myself. The policeman then proceeded to search the house once more before calling a repair man to board up the door and windows. When this was complete, the authorities left and it was left as just my Uncle and I for the night until they came back the next day to investigate further.

"Kellin, what the fuck did you do?" my Uncle said, looking down on me. This was a look I was used to. It was one of pure disgust. Any healthy relationship we'd had before had now evaporated, for good.

"I did nothing! Why do you just assume i've done something? I had no idea about this!" I protested.

"You have obviously done something, you probably stupidly left your key somewhere or something. You wonder why no one else would take you in Kellin? Why I had to deal with you? Well i'm not putting up with your behaviour anymore! Go and pack what little belongings you have and GET OUT OF MY HOUSE!" he screamed at me. He made his way to grab me so I dodged him, running into the hall, up the stairs and into my room. My room was fairly untouched and I hadn't had many belongings in the first place, so I grabbed a suitcase and put in most of my clothes, and my important belongings. I rubbed my eyes, now was not the time for tears. I should be used to this by now, it wasn't the first time I had been kicked out of my home. While I was doing this I felt my pocket, with the key safe inside. I couldn't believe he was blaming this on me, but it was expected. Images flashed through my mind of former conflicts and their causes. I thought of my Father, and I thought of my Mother. They all got sick of me eventually, and they all sent me somewhere else. But my Uncle was the last family member I had. I was alone now, homeless. And this time, I hadn't actually done anything wrong.

I left the house as quickly as possible and walked until I reached the beach, sitting on one of the benches at the top and getting out my phone. It was starting to get dark now as the sun had just set, and I had nowhere to sleep. I knew Vic would be there for me no matter what, so I brought up his contact on my phone and clicked dial. I wouldn't bother him for too long, I would find a job and try and pay for somewhere else to live. Even if I was only seventeen and it was almost impossible for me to get a place of my own.

It began buzzing as the call was going through and soon I heard Vic answer.

"Hello?"

"Hey Vic, it's Kellin"

"Hey Kellin! Are you okay?" he asked, sounding concerned.

"Not really, I just got kicked out of my Uncle's house and i'm sitting on a bench with a suitcase" I laughed weakly.

"Eventful day? Don't worry, you know you've got me. I'll come and meet you there and you can stay around my house for a while, okay?" he said.

"Yeah, thanks Vic"

"No problem Kells. See you in a minute"

Vic arrived not long after the call had ended, and he walked with me to his house. He explained the situation to his parents and they agreed that I could stay for a while. I really owed them everything. They brought a mattress into Vic's house and said that I could sleep there, which I was more than grateful for. I explained what had happened and they were far more accepting than my family. Maybe it wouldn't be too bad to tell Vic what had happened to make me start living here. We all had dinner together and Vic and I went up to his room, shutting the door behind us. He sat on his bed and I sat next to him, and I felt him drape his arms around me.

"Why did he blame you for all of this?" Vic asked.

"Because i'm always to blame. It's in my nature" I mumbled.

"But you didn't do anything!"

"It doesn't matter. I have done things before, and that's enough to make someone assume that I will do them again"

"But what have you done? Please tell me"

I thought back to the text that I had recieved during dinner. I had kept it quiet and tried not to react, I knew I shouldn't worry Vic. But it had hurt me, badly. Mainly because it was true. I took my phone out of my pocket and brought the message onto the screen, handing it to Vic and anticipating his response. This one thing could change everything.

Vic's POV

Kellin handed me the phone. Confused, I took it and looked at the screen. It was a message from his Uncle.

_Don't event try to come back to my house. I was a fool for even letting you stay here in the first place, they had told me what a problem you were. You can never care for anyone but yourself, can you? Maybe that's why your own parents didn't want you. I saw how much it hurt your Mother after what you did to her, so I was only trying to take you in for her benefit. But it was just a matter of time before you hurt someone else. There's no hope for a waste of space like you. Do the world a favour... and disappear?_

I couldn't believe it. What sort of sick person would say such a thing? I looked back at Kellin and saw him sitting with his head in his hands, shaking slightly. I put the phone down and brought my arms around him again, holding him to my chest.

"I hurt them" Kellin said. "I got into fights at school and stuff, people were treating me like shit. They made fun of me because my parents were divorced and my Dad didn't have time for me anymore. My Dad was a policeman and I got into a fight and was arrested for badly injuring someone. They found out I was his son and that I had multiple offenses and they fired him, because of me" Kellin began to cry, his eyes clouded over with thoughts as he remembered his past. "My Mom lost her job and she stopped getting the support money from my Father. He cut me off as if he'd never had a son in the first place, and as things got harder, my Mom grew to hate me too. She sent me away to live with her sister but my cousins hated me and I fought with one and hurt him, so I was sent here because no one trusted me not to hurt them" he bowed his head in shame. "And now this has happened"

"But you didn't do this" I reassured him. "This wasn't you, and your Uncle has no reason to blame you for it"

"But i've still done so many shit things. Even my fresh start didn't help me, I can't be saved Vic" he said, as he began shaking again and a tear rolled down his cheek. He aggressively wiped it away and sat up a little, trying to look less weak.

"I trust you, Kellin. You'll always have me. I swear" I said, holding his knee supportively. "Forget about them. Forget it all, because we have eachother now and I am going to help you"

I really meant it. It was quite a lot to take in about what had happened with Kellin, but it would never push me away from him. All I wanted to do was help him to feel better about himself and his life. It was clear now why Kellin had acted so aggressive towards Eric. He had been dealing with bullies his whole life, even in his family. They had cast him out and he had felt alone, and this had resulted in fighting. This also explained how his mood could change so quickly. One minute he'd be fine and as soon as someone said something wrong, he would completely turn. But I didn't care, I loved him the same even now that I knew. Nothing was going to change that. We both laid down together and I let him rest his head on my chest, and we remained there for a while. I considered letting him stay there for the night but people still didn't know about us, and I didn't have a lock on the door so they could walk in on us sleeping like this at any moment. He seemed to understand this without me saying anything though, as after a while he stood and walked over to his own bed, getting under the covers and falling swiftly asleep. I watched him for a little while, watching the rise and fall of his chest and the fluttering of his eyelids as he dreamed. I hoped they were happy dreams, he deserved that at the least. He was brave, and I had underestimated him. Kellin was a fighter, and I wanted to be there to fight at his side.

I smiled a little at him before burying myself in my covers, and letting the darkness surround me until I fell into a deep sleep. Things were going to get better for him, I would make sure of this.


	9. Chapter 9 - Dream

Chapter 9

Kellin's POV

_**There's no hope for a waste of space like you. **_

_The words echoed around my head, each syllable being another blow to the chest. My body was failing, I wanted things to end._

_**Do the world a favour... and disappear?**_

_I wanted to disappear. I wanted nothing more. The darkness was surrounding me, the voices were getting louder and even more menacing with each word. I was alone here, but I was still under attack. The voices wouldn't stop. They were consuming me._

_**Do the world a favour... and disappear?**_

_Why wouldn't they stop?_

_I realised how I felt. I felt like I had that day. I was drowning. There was no escape, and I was running out of breath. I wanted things to stop. Just stop!_

_**disappear.**_

_"I can't do this!" I screamed. "I don't know what to do! I can't make it stop!" _

_I looked around me, running as fast as I could, looking for an escape. Everything was dark around me, and yet I could feel walls. Closing in and devouring me. I couldn't escape now. I was being smothered and the air was being taken away. Slowly and painfully. _

_**They want you to disappear. **_

_"STOP!"_

_**EVERYONE wants you to disappear.**_

I sat up in bed, sweating madly and looking around me. I was in Vic's room, it was a dream. I rubbed my head, feeling a headache already forming. I remembered yesterday, how I had been kicked out yet again. How Vic had taken me in, despite me being a waste of space. I looked over to his bed to see him peacefully sleeping, wrapped in his covers. Today was Sunday, and I looked at the clock on his wall to see it was only 6am. No wonder he wasn't awake yet. I laid back down on back, staring up at the ceiling. I couldn't get up yet but there was no way that I was going back to sleep. Not when those dreams were there waiting for me.

I grew bored fairly quickly and picked up my phone from next to the bed, browsing through twitter and playing a couple of games. Holding my phone was just reminding me of the text it contained though, so I locked it and put it on the floor next to me. Vic caught my eye as I did so and I realised he was awake and had been watching me.

"Morning, are you alright?" he asked.

"Morning. Yeah, i'm fine"

"You don't look alright" he said, and I wondered what he meant. I then realised that I was still breathing heavily from my dream, and I must have looked bright red from being in shock.

"Bad dreams and stuff. But i'm okay" I lied.

"Good, then get over here" he smiled, lifting up his covers to invite me to join him. I obliged and stood, making my way to his bed and getting in next to him. He slung an arm over me and rested his head on my chest, and I brought one hand to his head, softly stroking his hair. "I could stay like this all day" he said.

"We should" I replied, and he looked up at me and nodded before returning his head to my chest. I felt his breathing slow as he fell back asleep, and I put my arms around him. I still didn't want to sleep again, but his company was enough to calm me and make me feel safe. I had never met anyone like Vic, he had truly changed my life. With him, I felt like someone actually cared. Someone wanted me to be happy. And this meant eveything to me, more than he would ever know. More than I would admit to anyone but myself. Vic was my life now, I just had to not screw things up.

But then the negative thoughts came rushing back. Of course I was going to screw this up. I said that things would work out with my Uncle, but they still didn't. I was going to hurt Vic. Maybe I should leave before I did, the right thing to do would be to spare him. But as I felt him breathe softly against me and curl up in my arms, I realised I couldn't leave him. I needed him more than I had ever needed anyone. I made a silent promise in my head to stay with him as long as possible, maybe he'd even be able to fix me one day. If things got too bad I would leave before he could get hurt. But for now, I would stay. I had to stay.

Vic's POV

It was the most beautiful thing in the world to wake up in Kellin's arms. I wasn't sure if he was asleep or not so I turned to look at him, and this caused him to stir and his eyes to open. As soon as he looked at me he began smiling, and it meant everything to me that I had that effect on him. I was determined to cheer him up today, no matter what the cost. We stayed cuddling for another few minutes and then I got out of bed, helping him out with me. I realised we were both in the same clothes as the day before so I began looking in the cupboard for something to wear, hoping that he would take the hint to leave the room. I was extremely self conscious. I subtly watched as he stood, walking over to his case and taking out some clothes to wear. He then sat back down on my bed, unfolding them painfully slow. I wasn't sure if he planned to leave or not. He noticed me looking at him and giggled a little, putting the clothes to the side and walking over to me. He slid his arms around my waist and brought his forehead to mine, looking into my eyes for a moment before kissing me lightly.

"Don't worry, i'll go and get changed in the bathroom" he winked, and then picked up his clothes and left. I shot him an apologetic glance and then waited until he had shut the door before I changed my clothes. Once I was dressed, I waited a moment before I heard a light knock on the door. I expected it to be Kellin returning, but was surprised when Mike walked in.

"Morning" Mike said. "Where's Kellin?"

"Getting changed in the bathroom"

"Ah, cool. So he didn't do it?" Mike asked. "You know, trash the house?"

"What? Of course he didn't! You know Kellin!"

Mike nodded. "Yes, I know he wouldn't trash his own house. But you're aware how dangerous he can act, right? Please don't tell me you still haven't noticed how violent he is. I could probably take him in a fight but I doubt you could" he explained.

"I know, but he's fine Mike. Really. I trust him and he's not going to do anything to hurt anyone" I replied.

"Okay, he is a great friend but I was just a little concerned. He's done some stuff at school that suggest otherwise. He's actually banned from using acid in Chemistry because he nearly threw it all over this girl when he was arguing with the teacher" Mike said. I had no idea about that, but it sounded like Kellin.

"I'm sure it's just a misunderstanding. But I will be careful" I promised him. He nodded and walked to the door, turning round to face me once more while standing in the doorway.

"By the way, whatever is going on between you and him. Be careful about what you're doing, and if you want to talk to anyone about it, you've always got me" he said, before leaving the room and shutting the door behind him. Mike... knew? Did that mean my parents knew? I waited and thought about it for a few more moments before Kellin returned to the room, fully dressed but running his hand through his messy hair.

"I don't suppose you have a comb or something, do you?" he asked. "I think I lost mine"

I handed him one and he thanked me, and then I watched as he styled his hair in my mirror. It was cute how he got frustrated with it when it wouldn't sit right. When he was finally satisfied he turned back to face me and smiled, handing me back my comb.

"Wanna get breakfast?" I suggested, and he grinned and nodded. We left my room and walked downstairs to find Mike already sitting at the table eating some cereal. I decided to treat Kellin and let him sit down while I made us both pancakes. I then got out some sugar, lemon, syrup, cream and chocolate spread so that he would have some things to choose from to put on his pancake. He chose ALL of them, and made happy noises of appreciation as he ate. I stuck to just cream and sugar but I couldn't help but laugh at him. Even Mike did.

Things were fairly normal, the three of us decided to play video games for most of the morning and Mike won about 90% of the rounds. He was far too good, and Kellin kept shouting at him every time he lost. I was starting to really notice just how easy it was to piss Kellin off, and how much he reacted to it. It was more than anyone I knew, but he was getting better at controlling it too. I could see him hold himself back when he got angry, and he was finding ways to distract himself and put himself back into a better mood. He was really trying, and I appreciated that. I would have to do something to make him really happy.

That's when I realised that it was my Mom and Dad's date night tonight. They had them every so often, usually on a Sunday. It was also a bank holiday that Monday so there was no school the next day. I decided that we should invite everyone over and have a party, and I brought it up when I saw my Father enter the room.

"Papa, would we be able to have some friends over tonight?" I asked.

"Yes! Can we?" Mike joined in. Kellin nodded a little in approval.

"You mean Jaime and Tony?" my Dad laughed. He knew us too well.

"Of course!" I laughed back.

"Yes you can, just as long as you keep things tidy and they're gone by tomorrow afternoon. Deal?"

"Deal!" Mike and I said at once, and Kellin smiled broadly. Tonight was going to be amazing, I couldn't wait. But first, we had today to enjoy together.


	10. Apology (Update - not a chapter)

Hey guys, i'm really sorry that this must have seemed like a new chapter... but I owe you all an apology.

The amount of support I have recieved on this fic is insane! The reviews mean the world to me and I can't believe how many views this has got.

I've been going through a really rough time lately - I have exams and a lot of other things putting stress on me right now. To be perfectly honest - I'm struggling. I have felt like I have no time to do simple things such as update this fic, but after reading the amazing reviews and seeing on my tumblr how many people appreciate this story - I can't give up on it.

I'm writing now so the next chapter should be up either tonight or tomorrow hopefully - I will try my best to continue regularly updating.

Thank you for sticking with this story!

- Jaimee x (Not Preciado unfortunately...)

Also, for the person that asked, my tumblr is punkasgard :)


	11. Chapter 10 - Party

Kellic – Chapter 10

Kellin's POV

"Wait, so… you actually LIVE here?" Tony asked me for about the third time tonight. It was Vic's party and Tony and Jaime had arrived about an hour ago. We were all now sitting on the floor eating pizza and watching random music channels until we found songs that we liked. Tony was next to me with our backs against the couch, while Jaime, Mike and Vic were opposite. We all sat around three huge pizza boxes and I watched as Mike and Vic fought over one.

"… yes, I live here" I replied (again).

"Yes, Vic finally decided it was time for his boyfriend to move in with him" Jaime laughed, and my eyes shot towards Vic. He was in the middle of fighting Mike and only looked up when he noticed my stare.

"…what?" Vic asked, scrunching his face up in confusion. He hadn't heard.

"Nothing, don't worry" I reassured him and he shrugged – resuming his fight with Mike. As soon as he looked away I glared at Jaime, and he laughed and held his hands up in defence. I hadn't told Jaime anything – I wonder if Vic had? I felt familiar dark feeling rush over me as I thought that Vic might have told them our secret, when I had told him not to. But I pushed it out of my mind – I wasn't going to let myself get angry at Vic like that. Ever. I distracted myself and joined in the fight for pizza; taking the biggest slice while Vic and Mike were too busy wrestling each other to notice.

The night passed and soon the others had been here for 4 hours. They were all staying over and it was only 11pm so we settled for playing rock band as loudly as possible. I eyed the controllers – trying to work out which of them would cause me the least embarrassment. It surprised me when Vic went straight up to the microphone without hesitation. Vic was going to sing? I almost blushed just at the thought. I'd never be able to sing in front of other people. I picked up a guitar, Mike picked up the other guitar and Tony chose the drums (Jaime was far more content with eating all of the ice cream out of the freezer) and we played a few rounds, before Mike and Tony agreed to swap instruments. I discovered I wasn't very good at playing guitar – even a fake one. But wow. Vic could sing. He was nothing less than fucking incredible. He sang every song perfectly and it astonished me that his voice was so clear and pure.

We continued to play the game for a few hours before we all grew bored. We put it all away and then sat back in a circle on the floor. A sigh echoed throughout the room.

"What do you guys want to do now?" Vic asked. The room stayed silent for a few too many moments.

"Something fun" Tony said. _That's helpful… _I thought. I noticed an evil grin spread across Mike's face though, and he stood and ran out of the room into the kitchen. I heard the fridge door open and then close, and then Mike walked back into the room – holding several cans of beer.

"Get drunk?" Mike asked. Vic looked at him a little in shock – shaking his head sternly.

"They're Dad's, Mike. As you're older brother I'm not going to let you get drunk when I should be taking care of you. It won't end well" Vic lectured him.

"You're not babysitting me, Vic. And you're not that much older than me! Come on, at least one each?" Mike begged, pulling a puppy face and drawing an imaginary halo above his head.

"Ugh, fine. Only one" Vic sighed, holding out his hand and allowing Mike to pass one to him. I did the same and Mike gave one to me, and then I snapped the lid open and began to chug it. It was fairly strong and quite bitter. Not really to my taste but I was hardly going to pass up the offer when everyone else was having one. We put some music on in the background and sat drinking and talking until we all began to get a satisfactory buzz. I watched as Mike opened another can when Vic wasn't looking, downed it, and then opened another one. He was going to be far more drunk than anyone else here. He noticed me looking and grinned at me, putting a finger to his lips as if to say _'don't tell him!'._ I nodded at him and smiled back, and then continued to drink my beer while I listened to the conversation the others were having.

An upbeat song came on and Jaime leaped to his feet – beginning to dance around the room. We all laughed and joined in until we were all dancing in the most embarrassing way possible, and stumbling around the room, unable to contain our laughter. We turned the TV on to a music channel so that we could dance along with the videos, and continued to do this for a while. I noticed Mike start to look quite bad, and eventually, he rushed out of the room. Vic and Jaime were too busy dancing together to notice, and Tony simply stared after him and then looked at me in question.

"I've got it" I reassured him, and then followed Mike out of the room. I caught him as he was walking out of the bathroom. It didn't take a genius to work out that he had just been sick. "Are you alright?" I asked.

"I'm fi- shit, no I'm not" he said, turning to go back into the bathroom again. I followed him and watched as he sat on the floor, waiting to throw up. "You don't have to follow me in here, get out" he growled.

"I'm checking you're alright. I've been drunk enough times, I know how shit it is" I laughed.

"Well leave" he growled louder. I wasn't liking his tone. My good mood instantly dropped. I wasn't one to take being told what to do lightly.

"I'm trying to fucking help you actually" I raised my voice in annoyance.

"I don't need your help! Just because you've moved in here, doesn't mean that you can start telling me what to do!" he shouted back. He was sick in the toilet once more, and then leaned back against the bath, wiping his mouth with his hand. He looked up at me glaring down at him and stumbled to his feet in order to meet my height.

"Don't you fucking say that, it's not like it was my choice to get kicked out" I screamed back at him. My voice was getting louder as I was getting angrier. I could feel the guilt already consuming me – this wasn't going to end well. But there was nothing I could do about it. It was as if I was being controlled by someone else. I couldn't do anything about my actions. I was blind to anything else around me but my anger.

"Well it still happened, didn't it?" Mike shouted. "You're still here acting as if you're my parent, when you're not, okay?!"

"Don't fucking call me a parent. I would never want to be a fucking parent! Parents are shit!" I screamed.

"Why don't you just fuck off then?" he shouted, moving closer to me, trying to intimidate me. I wasn't going to stand for that.

"Why don't **YOU?**" I shouted back, grabbing him by the collar and aggressively shoving him up against the bathroom wall with a loud thud.

"What the fuck are you doing?" Jaime gasped. I turned to look towards the door – my hand still clasped tightly around Mike's shirt. I still had him pressed up against the wall. My eyes met Vic's and I instantly snapped out of my trance, releasing Mike and stepping away. He slid down the wall and onto the floor – groaning in pain. It didn't matter that I had let go though. From the look in Vic's eyes, I knew the damage had already been done. The five of us remained silent – Jaime, Vic and Tony staring into the room from the doorway, Mike slumped against the wall, and me standing away from him. We stared silently at each other before Vic finally reacted. He ran forward and for a split second I thought he was running to me, but then he went straight to Mike. I watched as he helped Mike to his feet.

"Shit bro, are you alright?" Vic asked, holding Mike's shoulders and looking at him – checking for any damage.

"Fine… only hit my back on the wall. I'm fine" Mike reassured Vic. He was still in his drunken state and hardly able to string along the sentence.

"You're sure?" Vic asked him, and he nodded. Vic nodded back and then turned to look at me – hurt evident in his eyes. Now they were all looking at me. I couldn't take it – I had hurt the one person I said I'd never hurt. And I had hurt a friend. Someone that actually trusted me and liked my company. I got angry with myself and growled, storming out of the room. Jaime and Tony moved out of the way to let me through. I walked into Vic's room, shutting the door behind me and getting out my suitcase. I heard hushed voices on the landing but I wasn't going to pay attention to what they were saying. I didn't need to care anymore. I had already pushed them away. I wouldn't be part of their lives for much longer.

I began to pack some of my belongings. I didn't know where I would go, but I knew that I needed to leave. I had negatively affected their lives too much already. They didn't need me around.

I heard someone enter the room behind me and shut the door behind them. I tensed a little before ignoring it and continuing to pack.

"Just where do you think you're going?" I heard Vic say calmly behind me. I felt his arms snake around my waist and he buried his face into my neck, holding me close to him. I gently but sternly pulled myself away from him and sat on his bed, refusing to look at him.

"Please don't hold me like that" I said quietly.

"Why not?" he asked.

"You know exactly why. How can you even stand to look at me right now?" I spat.

"Because I know you, Kellin. I know you didn't mean this" Vic replied, sitting next to me on the bed but giving me my space.

"It doesn't matter. It still happened. I fucking hurt your brother, Vic"

"He's fine, he just hit his back a bit. You can't completely blame yourself for this, he's hammered out of his mind"

"But I reacted to it" I said, turning to look Vic in the eyes. "I was the one that started getting violent. It could have got much worse if you hadn't have walked in, I don't know what I would have done"

"But I did walk in, and it's all fine now. So don't worry about it" Vic reasoned.

"I can't just pretend it didn't happen. I always do this, and it kills me to know that I haven't changed at all. I hurt my friend. He's your fucking brother!" I gasped, looking away again.

"Kellin, please stop doing this to yourself" Vic began. "You're so much better than this! You hate yourself because you make mistakes, but there's nothing wrong with you! I just want you to see that! Please, stop packing now. I meant what I said. I'm here for you no matter what and I never want you to leave me"

I felt him wrap his arms around me again, but I didn't stop it this time. I leaned into his touch, and rested my head against him. He felt so warm and safe. I couldn't believe that I had hurt the most important person in the world to me.

"Please… stay?" Vic asked. "For me. I need you as much as you need me, and I need you to stay here with me" Vic whispered. I nodded into his chest and he held me tighter. I never wanted to leave his embrace.

But I remembered what I had told myself before.

_If things got too bad, I would leave before he could get hurt._

I wasn't going to hurt Vic any more. I would stay until I had somewhere else to go, or until I could end this pathetic existence once and for all. I was only staying now because I couldn't hurt Vic by leaving him just yet. But eventually, he would have to move on from me. Because no one should be with me. I didn't deserve to have anyone here with me, and I was not going to ruin Vic's beautiful life for my own selfish and miserable reasons.

I would wait it out for a while, and then I would eventually just disappear. Just like the world wanted.


	12. Chapter 11 - Ice Cream

Chapter 11

Vic's POV

After the fight, it was late and we were all too exhausted both emotionally and physically to really do anything else. Kellin and I returned to the living room once he had calmed down a little and we all brought bed covers, pillows and blankets into the room. Mike fell asleep on the couch, Jaime on a cushioned armchair, and the rest of us remained awake on the floor. Tony was lying with his eyes closed, but I could hear the low hum of his music as his headphones were in his ears. I looked to Kellin, who was lying on the other side of me. The side furthest from Mike. He was lying still and on his back, staring up at the ceiling. I knew he wouldn't be in the mood to talk so I left him and proceeded to scroll mindlessly through my twitter until I eventually fell asleep.

Mike's POV

My head was fucking killing, I should have listened to Vic about the alcohol. All I had done was caused trouble last night. I looked towards the others from my position lying on the couch. They were all awake and I watched as they all ate breakfast around the coffee table. Vic passed Kellin a pop tart and he laughed weakly before thanking him and taking it. He still didn't look great – last night had obviously affected him quite badly. It was my fault for starting the argument, but he also needed to learn to contain his anger. I knew how dangerous Kellin could be. It was obvious that something wasn't right, and I had warned Vic. But there was something going on between them – I had never seen Vic so happy before. And Kellin was my friend, so I owed him an apology.

I slowly sat up, pushing the covers off of me and sitting normally on the couch. The others smiled at me and said good morning and I smiled and nodded back. I stood and joined them at the table, taking any food I could find. We spent the majority of the morning watching TV until Jaime and Tony went home. Vic shut the door behind them and then turned to Kellin, asking if he wanted to go upstairs. Kellin nodded, but I stopped them on their way up.

"Err, is it okay if I talk to Kellin quickly first?" I asked. Vic nodded and made his way upstairs while Kellin stayed behind. He awkwardly stood, looking at me and waiting for what I had to say. "I wanted to apologise for last night" I said. "I wasn't in a great place and I just overreacted a little. I obviously struck a nerve or something, so I'm sorry". Kellin tensed, avoiding my gaze.

"Nah, it was my fault. I shouldn't have gotten violent" he said, awkwardly running his hand through his hair.

"So, are we alright?" I asked.

"Yeah, we're fine" he said, smiling a little.

"Cool" I replied and bro-fisted him, and then stepped out of the way for him to go and join Vic.

Kellin's POV

Most awkward conversation ever? I think so. But I was glad that Mike wasn't angry at me anymore. That meant that there would be no tension now. I joined Vic upstairs and smiled at him – doing my best to fake happiness because I was still feeling a little numb. I sat on the bed next to him and timidly slid my hand towards him until it met his hand, and I wrapped mine around his.

"Is everything alright?" Vic asked.

"Yeah, Mike and I sorted it out. There's no problem anymore" I smiled.

"That's great! I'm really glad, Kellin. You know I only want you to be happy" Vic replied.

"Yeah, I do. So what do you want to do today?" I asked him.

"I forgot to tell you, there's a new ice cream shop opening! We should go there!" Vic squealed.

"Hell yeah! Where is it?"

"It's.. um… oh shit, it's the beach" Vic said awkwardly. I shuddered at the mention of the place, but I sort of owed Vic after what happened last night.

"Let's go" I smiled.

"Really? Are you sure it's okay?" he worried.

"It's fine, Vic. Now get dressed!" I shoved him and we both laughed.

"Get out then!" He shouted, shoving me back towards the door. I giggled and walked back over to him, pulling him into my arms and closer to me. I was taller than he was so his head fit perfectly into the crook of my neck, and I felt his hands rest against my back. I sighed in pure bliss; I would never get tired of being with him.

"What if I don't want to get out?" I chuckled, and he looked up at me. He brought one of his hands to my cheek and stroked it lightly with his thumb, smiling delicately at me and looking into my eyes.

"I don't think I'm ready for anything like that" he whispered nervously, and blushed a little. I smiled at him and he smiled weakly back.

"You don't need to be. Anything you want, I'll do it. Even if I have to change in a different room forever" I chuckled. I kissed him slowly and lightly on the lips before moving away and picking up my clothes, a comb and some hairspray. I winked at him as I reached the doorway and then stepped out, closing the door behind me.

Vic's POV

It was strange how many different personalities Kellin could have. One moment he could be sweet and loving, and the next he could be beating someone to death without even thinking about the consequences. I loved him all the same though, and I knew that he would never hurt me. The incident with Mike had taught me to be a little more cautious though. Just because Kellin loved me and could control his anger around me, didn't mean that he would be the same with someone else. I needed to look out for him and make sure that he didn't get himself into any trouble. I didn't mind doing this though. It was all worth it for him.

I got dressed quickly and then looked around the room for my comb, before realising that Kellin had taken it with him. I really needed to get him his own one. I thought about when he had said that he didn't want to leave the room. I knew there was nothing wrong with it – it was only changing clothes. I changed in front of other guys when I did PE at school. But it was just the fact that it was Kellin, and Kellin was flawless. In comparison – what was I? I guess you could say that I was embarrassed about my appearance. That's why I had told him that I wasn't ready for this. I hoped that I'd gain the courage soon, I mean, he obviously found me at least a little attractive, or he wouldn't be interested enough to be with me.

He soon returned to the room and the smell of hairspray almost knocked me out. I snatched the comb and tutted at him before turning to the mirror and pulling it through my messy, brown hair. I was still debating whether I should get it cut or not, I sort of liked it how it was. Even if I got the occasional 'girl' comment at school. They didn't really bother me. When we were both ready, I grabbed my wallet and we said goodbye to my parents. I knocked on Mike's door to see if he wanted to come out with us but he said he had too much of a headache and wanted to stay in bed all day. We left the house and began to walk to the beach, side by side. I listened to Kellin as he laughed and talked about anything and everything, but I felt my heart ache a little. When he looked away, I looked down towards his hand. It was dangling by his side just like mine was – and they were only a small distance apart. I fought the urge to just hold it. Kellin didn't want anyone to know about us yet, and I wanted to keep my promise to him.

_But oh, _I thought. _I'd do anything to hold your hand._

Kellin's POV

We eventually reached the beach and Vic pointed out the ice cream shop, which was currently mostly hidden by a huge crowd of people.

"Oh… It's gonna take forever to get one now!" Vic sighed in defeat. He sat down on the sand and I sat down next to him.

"It's just a line. We'll wait a while and it will get smaller" I reassured him. We waited for another 40 minutes but there was no change.

"Let's just go" Vic sighed, standing and beginning to walk away. I joined him and we walked side by side, walking along the beach.

"I'm sure there's a shop somewhere where we can get one, we could go into town" I suggested.

"It's a bank holiday, nothing will be open"

"You're such an optimist. Let's just stay here for a while then" I said. We ended up staying at the beach nearly all day, and built a huge sandcastle that we were both proud of. Vic swam in the sea for a while but I simply watched – I didn't want to ever go in that water again. Because the seasons were changing, it began to get darker much earlier. As I realised that the sun would be setting soon, I knew I needed to do something now.

"Can you stay here for a while? I just need to get something, I won't be long" I asked Vic. He tilted his head in confusion but then he gave in and nodded. I left him on the beach and began to walk home, feeling in my pocket to check that the key his parents had given me this morning was still there. It turned out I didn't need it though, as the door was unlocked when I got back. Must have been because Mike was still in the house. I went up to Vic's room and grabbed my backpack and a blanket, folding it up and putting it inside. I then went downstairs and took some food out of the fridge, such as some apples, drinks, and sandwiches, and put these into the bag too. On the way back to the beach I walked past the local newsagents and realised that they were open. I went inside and smiled as I found what I was looking for – a fridge filled with different ice creams. I chose a box of two ice creams with chocolate buttons and rainbow sauce on the top and paid for them.

I reached the beach and Vic noticed me and walked over to me, eyeing the box in my hand suspiciously until he realised what it was and gasped in excitement. I handed the box to him and he thanked me, hugging me and then ripping the top open. While he did this I opened the bag and got out the blanket, laying it across the sand and then putting the different foods on it. He began eating his ice cream and then froze when he saw what I had done and a huge grin spread across his face.

"What is all this?" He asked.

"Just something for you. I owe you, since I'm living at your house and everything" I laughed.

"You don't owe me, we probably would have moved in together eventually anyways" he said, and then blushed bright red. He walked over to me but then held himself back and looked around us, clearly noticing that we were in public. Frankly, I didn't care. There was hardly anyone on the beach anyway and I just wanted to make Vic happy. I pulled him towards me and wrapped my arms around his waist, watching as he brought his arms up and around my neck. I smiled at the perfect setting as the sun met the horizon behind us, and then I watched as he slowly brought his face to mine. He moved his hand and delicately placed it under my chin, kissing me lightly as if I was fragile. I responded by bringing my own hands either side of his face and pulling him closer, kissing him a little harder but still just as sweetly. We remained like that for a moment before pulling apart and then sitting down on the blanket. I took out my phone and rested the side of my head against his, and we both smiled as I took a picture. We then ate, talked and laughed for hours after that, until it got too dark and cold to stay out. I helped Vic to his feet and picked up the blanket, wrapping it around his shoulders. I picked up the trash from our picnic and threw it in a nearby bin, and then put the empty bag on my back. We quietly walked home side by side, in comfortable silence. Halfway home, Vic spoke again.

"Kellin, can I can I hold your hand?" he mumbled timidly, avoiding my gaze. I stopped walking and he noticed and stopped next to me, looking at me nervously. I grinned at him and nodded.

"Of course, Vic" I smiled, and he grinned back and took my hand, lacing his fingers with mine. I guess being together in public wasn't that bad, but then again, it was night now and no one else was outside to see us. I didn't know how I'd feel about everyone knowing – I wanted to protect Vic. He would definitely receive homophobic comments for this and I didn't want that to happen to him. I could stand up for myself if I received it, but I didn't think that he would be able to. Plus, he was with **me. **This wasn't just any guy, it was **me. **I wasn't exactly liked by people.

I put this thought out of my mind and continued to walk home with him. I didn't need the negative thoughts when I was having such a perfect night. Our hands let go once we reached the house and we walked inside, taking off our shoes and saying hello to his parents. Vic told them that we had already eaten out and then we went up to his room and turned on the TV. We sat on his bed with our backs to the headboard and watched it for a little while, and then he nuzzled his face affectionately into my neck.

"Get up for a second" I told him. He obliged and I sat up a little more, opening my legs. "Sit here?" I asked. He nodded and sat between my legs, lying with his back on my chest and his head in the crook of my neck. I pulled his covers over us and continued to watch the TV, absent-mindedly stroking his arm until he eventually fell asleep. I then turned the TV off with the control, and went to move him off of me and go to my own bed, but he opened his eyes and lightly pulled me back down to him again.

"Don't leave?" he muttered, still half asleep.

"Your parents might walk in" I warned him.

"I don't care; they won't come in any way. Please stay" he begged.

"Fine, just for tonight. I don't want to get you into any trouble" I replied, laying back down and wrapping my arms around him, enjoying how comfortable he was. I was glad that I didn't have to go and get in a bed alone. He nuzzled back into me and sighed in content.

"You won't get me into trouble, trust me" he said. I chuckled a little.

"Okay."

We lay together for a while longer, and his breathing slowed so I thought he had gone to sleep. I closed my eyes calmly and hugged him. He was perfect and I was so happy to be with him. I'd spend every night for the rest of my life like this, if I could. As I was drifting off to sleep, I heard his soft voice pierce through the silence.

"Kellin? Can we tell them about us tomorrow? I really want to" Vic whispered.

Within that second, the whole mood changed.

My eyes shot open and my heart started beating rapidly.

I froze.


	13. Chapter 12 - Time

_**Hey guys, shewritesthefics here! I apologise about this chapter, I spent like four hours last night writing this while listening to Avenged Sevenfold and I don't know, I just don't think it turned out very well. I left it and decided not to post it last night because I wasn't happy with it, but I've come back to it today and changed a few things and I'm still not entirely sure. I feel like it's a bit boring… **____** but I'll let you be the judge of this, so here goes… **_

Chapter 12

Vic's POV

"Kellin? Can we tell them about us tomorrow? I really want to" I whispered into the darkness. I felt him tense behind me and my heart sank. I knew he wouldn't want to - why had I thought that today would change anything?

He stayed silent for a few moments so I relaxed back into him, no longer anticipating an answer.

"Whatever you want, Vic"

My head snapped up and I looked at his silhouette in the darkness.

"What?" I asked. "Are you serious?". His reply was delayed, but then I saw the corners of his mouth tilt upwards in a smile.

"Of course" he said, and then pulled me closer towards him. I melted into his arms and sighed happily. This was going to be perfect! We could finally be together with everyone knowing. We wouldn't need to sneak around anymore. I relaxed and enjoyed his warmth until things began to go blurry and dark, and I fell into a calm, content sleep.

Kellin's POV

I woke up to see a beam of light making its way through the curtains and onto my face. I stretched a little, careful not to wake Vic. I reached to my phone on the bedside table and noticed that I had woken up 20 minutes before our alarm. I smiled and wrapped my arms around Vic again and he nuzzled into my neck. He was so cute when he was sleeping - his eyes were delicately closed but fluttering as he dreamed, and his mouth was hanging slightly open as he lightly snored. I had seen Mike fall asleep in the living room before, and he did the exact same thing.

I thought back to yesterday and what a beautiful day we had together. I thought about the night, and the promise I had made Vic before we fell asleep.

_"Kellin? Can we tell them about us tomorrow? I really want to" _

"_Whatever you want, Vic"_

I couldn't lie - the thought of everyone knowing terrified me. But when I had felt Vic laying in my arms, asking me for this, I just couldn't say no. It was going to be difficult, but I would be there to protect him. No one would hurt my Vic.

I lay with my eyes closed for a further 15 minutes, and then turned off our alarm before it rang. It was such an awful noise to wake up to. I carefully slid out from under Vic, making sure that he was still asleep. I walked down the stairs to see that his parents had already gone to work and Mike was still in bed. I made us two coffees and began to take them upstairs, before wondering if I should have taken Mike one too. I decided against it though as I'm sure he wouldn't have appreciated me coming into his room while he was sleeping. I walked back into the room, putting the two coffees on the bedside table and then sitting on the bed next to Vic. He was curled up into a ball - arms spread out in front of him as if he had been reaching out to me in his sleep. I took one of his hands into mine and softly stroked it with my thumb while I watched him breathing slowly and dreaming. I was so happy to be here with him, I hoped that it would continue for a long time. I couldn't help but have this little voice in the back of my mind telling me otherwise though. No matter how hard I tried.

_It will end eventually. _

But what if I don't want it to? Can't I stay with the person that makes me happy?

_Stay, and all you're going to do is hurt him. He has a great life as it is - do you really want to be the one to drag him down?_

But I love him. I can protect him - I'm never going to hurt him. I wouldn't do that to Vic.

_You say that, but think - you never wanted to hurt your family either… but you still did…_

I shook my head, trying to get the negative thoughts to go away. If I could just be optimistic, maybe they would stay away. I felt Vic's hand move beneath mine and looked up to see that he was waking up. His eyes slowly opened and he rubbed them, looking over to me.

"What time is it?" Vic asked.

"Seven, I was just going to wake you up" I smiled. "Morning darling"

"Morning. Do we have to get up yet? I'm comfy" he moaned.

"Unless you want to be late, yes!"

"Ten more minutes? Just come back here and hug me" Vic pleaded, looking at me innocently. I gave in and got into the bed next to him, pulling the covers on top of us again. I wrapped my right arm around him and our legs tangled together, while he lay with his head on my chest and his left hand stroking my hair. We stayed like this for another ten minutes before he moved and began to get up.

"No, stay" I commanded him, pulling him forcefully back down next to me.

"Come on, Kellin. You were right before, we're going to be late" he laughed, trying to pull me up with him.

"Fuck school, I don't even care" I argued. "I want to stay here and cuddle you all day"

"Well I'm getting up and going to school, so you either stay here alone all day or you come with me" he said, finally managing to get past me and stand up.

"Fine" I replied and pushed the covers off of me, getting out of the bed. I handed him his coffee and he took it gratefully, sipping it and smiling at me. I went to the closet (we had finally moved my clothes out of my suitcase) and picked some clothes for the day, making my way to the bedroom door. Before I could touch the handle, I felt Vic hold onto my other hand. I turned around to face him.

"You… can get changed here if you want. I mean… if you really want to" Vic said nervously, staring at the ground.

"Are you sure?" I asked. He nodded at me and walked me back into the middle of the room, letting go of my hand and then going to the closet to choose his clothes. I began to get changed on the opposite side of the room, quickly changing my boxers while he was looking in the other direction. I continued to get changed and glanced at him every so often - noticing that he didn't change his boxers like I had. He was obviously embarrassed about this and I wasn't going to rush him to do anything like that. I was changed first and I watched as he took his shirt off and picked up the new one to put on. He was so beautifully tanned and looked incredible, it was taking nearly all of my will-power to not just run up to him and kiss him. He didn't notice me looking (or was avoiding my gaze) so I allowed him to put the new shirt on and then he was done. He turned and smiled at me, blushing a little as he realised I had been watching. I blushed too at the fact that I had been caught.

I walked over to him and smiled, kissing him lightly on the lips and then taking my hairspray from on top of the dresser. I searched the room for the comb, before turning and realising that Vic was holding it behind me.

"Nuh-uh" he laughed. "I'm using it first today"

"Fine" I scoffed, deciding to check that I had all the right books for once in my life instead.

Soon, Vic, Mike and I were all ready and left the house to walk to school. We met the others and all walked together, and Vic purposely walked slowly so that we trailed behind them for a minute.

"Are we still going to, well, you know…?" Vic muttered once the others were out of earshot.

"..Yeah, just not yet. During lunch maybe?" I suggested.

"Okay" he agreed, and we met the others again.

The day was fairly normal. Luckily, at least one person from our group was in each of my lessons so I didn't have to sit alone. I was in Biology throwing paper balls at the back of Tony's head when the bell finally rang signalling the beginning of lunch time. I put my stuff back into my bag and stood, waiting for Tony to join me. He walked over and threw all the paper balls on me, and then laughed as I struggled to reach one that had fallen into my hood. I gave him a friendly shove as we left the classroom and walked to the cafeteria. We bought our food (which frankly, wasn't the nicest food in the world…) and then joined the others outside at our usual bench.

I sat down, taking my place next to Vic and across from Mike.

"Hey" Mike said, smiling at me. I nodded and said hey back, and then ate while listening to everyone's conversations. As I listened to Mike and Tony debating about what was better; Star Wars or Harry Potter, I felt Vic's hand reach mine under the table. He wrapped his hand around mine and squeezed it affectionately. I looked up to his face to see him looking at me kindly but expectantly. I guess now was the time…

I just wanted to make sure that it wasn't too over the top; I didn't exactly want to announce my love for Vic to the entire school. That wouldn't end well. I casually brought our hands onto the table while I was mid-conversation, as if it was nothing. I merely suggested that Star Wars was slightly better than Harry Potter, and Tony went to agree and gloat to Mike, but then froze as his eyes locked on our hands.

"Are you… are you two like, together?" Tony asked, stunned. I turned to Vic and was happy to see a huge grin had spread across his face. He nodded enthusiastically and everyone made sounds of approval.

"I knew it!" Mike laughed.

"I'm so happy for you guys! Our Vic finally has a boyfriend!" Jaime grinned. I felt myself flush red. "Aww, look at Kellin! He's all embarrassed!"

"Am not!" I protested, scowling at him.

"Awwh, I think it's cute. I knew you guys would get together at some point" Mike said.

"So this isn't too weird for you?" I laughed.

"It's fine with me!" Mike replied. "Wait… I share a wall with you guys! Oh fuck no!" he shouted and buried his head in his hands.

Everyone laughed and I watched as Vic flushed a dark shade of red. Looks like I wasn't the only embarrassed one. A few more questions were asked such as 'how long have you been together?' (And some more awkward ones from Tony, such as 'what have you guys done together?' which were dismissed and remained unanswered… oh Tony…), and then, it was the end of lunch. We had one lesson left until the end of school and I was happy that I shared this lesson with Vic.

"Ready to go to Math?" Vic asked.

"Yeah, let's go" I smiled. We began walking next to each other after saying goodbye to the others, and I soon found Vic's hand reach mine and hold on lightly.

"Is this okay?" Vic asked cautiously. I gulped a little, I was definitely nervous about this. Not for my sake - I could easily put up a fight. But for Vic's sake. There would always be homophobic people in the world, and I didn't want Vic to be their victim. But he wanted to be able to be with me in public, so I would give him what he wanted. I squeezed his hand back affectionately and nodded, and he smiled back at me. I watched as we received a mixture of looks from the people we walked past - some happy, some confused, and a couple of looks of pure disgust. But we knew that was going to happen, it was just something that we had to deal with. And we would. Together.

We reached the class and walked to our desk at the back. The class started normally until the teacher had to leave the room to go and get some more textbooks, and then some of the more popular people in front of us turned around to look at us.

"So are you two like, together?" Amanda asked. Amanda was one of those girls that any sane human would sigh at the existence of. She had huge, drawn on eyebrows and bleach blonde hair with brown roots and pink ends (the hair was actually moderately pretty, it was just a shame about her shitty personality) and she wore bright red lipstick and had the slowest, most monotone voice I had ever heard, which made me want to stab myself in the eyes with my pen. I let Vic answer her and he timidly nodded, avoiding eye contact.

"That's cool" one of her friends said in a clearly sarcastic tone before they all turned back to the front and laughed amongst themselves. I turned and smiled at Vic, but he seemed to still be happy anyway. He was far more optimistic than I was. There was one more comment made in this lesson, which came from none other than Eric and his douchebag friends. After a lecture from our teacher, we were given the work to do while he helped some of the other students. This meant that most of the class did nothing we were supposed to, and Vic and I ended up just talking the whole time. Mid-conversation, Eric called over to us.

"Hey Vic, why didn't you tell us this guy was your boyfriend?" Eric laughed. "I knew it!"

"Because that's not your business" Vic replied.

"Whoa okay, back off mate! Why don't you go back to sucking off your boyfriend?"

"Just because you're too much of a stupid dick to get a girlfriend, doesn't mean you have to have a go at people who are already in relationships" I spat.

"Whatever, I wouldn't want to talk to you fags anyways, you'll probably try and turn me too" Eric laughed, and turned around. I stood up from my seat ready to scream something back at him, but I felt Vic tug on my arm. I looked at him and saw him frowning at me, shaking his head. I obeyed and sank back down into my chair, annoyed that I couldn't give Eric what he deserved.

The lesson soon ended after that and we all began to walk home. As we were walking, Vic began to talk to me.

"Thank you for not starting anything with Eric after what he said" Vic said.

"He started it all anyways, but it's okay. You didn't want me to" I replied.

"Yeah, I mean, it would just mean a lot to me if you could try not to be violent. I know things have happened already and I just don't want you to get into any trouble"

"Okay, I promise I won't. I'll try my best not to" I said to him, and he smiled and wrapped his arm around my side. I did the same to him and we walked home together, happily talking the whole way.

Vic's POV

School went quite quickly on Wednesday, but I was just thinking about what Kellin had said after school the day before. He had promised me that he wouldn't be violent anymore and would do his best to stay out of trouble, and that meant the world to me. We had spoken about it further that night, and I had told him how much it meant to me. He agreed and said that he understood why, and promised me nothing else would happen. We had a great night together, and then Wednesday was just as good. The news had spread about us and we avoided most of the abuse, so we were free to just be a couple in front of everyone. It was perfect.

At the end of the day, we all met up and walked home. I had a load of homework to do so I did that in my room while Kellin watched TV. He told me that he was bored and was going to go and buy some Mountain Dew at the store (him and that drink…) so I said goodbye to him and continued to study. Stupid Physics work…

Kellin's POV

I arrived at the shop and bought several cans of Mountain Dew - as many as I could afford with the money I had taken. On my way out of the shop, I heard a voice from behind me. A voice that made my blood boil the second I heard it.

"Hey Quinn! Going somewhere?" Eric shouted to me. I reluctantly turned around to see him standing by the bike shed with several friends, and most of them were smoking and watching me with a taunting look in their eyes.

"Home actually" I shouted back. I turned to walk away, but then he shouted at me again.

"Home? Or to your boyfriend's house?" he laughed. "So who's the girl in the relationship? You or Vic?". His friends laughed along with him.

"I bet it's Vic, he looks enough like a girl!" one of his friends laughed.

"Yeah, probably wouldn't take much to beat up a little faggot like him, would it?" Eric spat. "We'll have to try some time"

"Stay the fuck away from Vic" I warned them, stepping closer.

"You see, I don't like being told what to do, Quinn. So maybe I will go after your little lady-boy, you'd like that, wouldn't you?" he taunted.

"You fucking dare" I spat back, and they all laughed.

"What do you intend to do about it?" Eric asked, stepping closer and squaring up to me. "What will you do when your little boyfriend is lying on the floor in a pool of his own blood?".

I punched him, clean across the face. Eric fell to his knees and then jumped back up again, scowling at me. How dare he say that about Vic! His friends walked over to join him at his side, and I looked at them all. There were four of them in total - including Eric. I could easily take them all.

Eric lunged at me, attempting to punch me back. I dodged it and hit him again, and then one of his friends moved forwards and punched me in the stomach. I felt the air escape my lungs and stumbled, but I didn't fall to the floor. I punched two of them again and the others backed off, leaving Eric standing alone. He punched me across the face and I kneed him in the ribs - pushing him to the floor. I kicked him down and he remained on the ground, not moving. His friends ran to him and pulled him to his feet, and there was blood dripping down from his head and bruises forming on his face. They pulled him with them and ran away, leaving me alone.

I angrily walked home, thinking about all the different ways I'd like to see Eric die. I was furious, how dare he say the things that he did! I got home and walked into the house, setting the bag of drinks down on the kitchen counter.

"What took you so long?" said a voice from behind me. I turned around, forgetting for a moment about the blood and bruises scattered across my face. My eyes met those of another person and a gasp was the only sound I heard, because everything around me was becoming a blur. All I could see was the one person in front of me - the person I had betrayed. The one that I didn't deserve.

"What the fuck happened to you?" Vic shouted, looking at me in shock.

_**((I would also like to **__**apologise**__** for the offensive language used - it is just in the context and I don't believe people should use the words I have written. Thank you for reading!))**_


	14. Chapter 13 - Hold On

Chapter 13

Kellin's POV

"What the fuck happened to you?" Vic shouted, running over to me and lightly touching the cuts on my face – causing me to wince and him to pull back his hand. I was speechless. What could I say? I had done the one thing he had begged me not to do. The thing that I had promised wouldn't happen. I watched his expression change to that of realisation when he caught on to what I had done because of my lack of a response. He stepped back from me a little. "Was it Eric again?" He muttered.

"…Yes" I replied, bowing my head in shame. I knew he'd be disappointed with me. I had messed up.

"You promised me you wouldn't" he said, looking at me angrily.

"But they were insulting you Vic, they said they'd hurt you" I protested, stepping forward and trying to pull him closer to me. He responded by shoving my arms away from him and stepping back further. Shocked, I began moving closer to him again. "Vic, I-"

"No, Kellin." Vic said, pushing me away from him again. He sighed deeply. "I'm gonna go out for a while, I need to think". He reached for his phone on the kitchen counter, but I grabbed his wrist and stopped him.

"Don't leave" I begged. He snatched his hand back and took the phone, pulling on his jacket and walking out of the door. I stared after him before it began to dawn on me. I had taken it too far. From the blood on Eric's head, it had looked like I had cut his head open. There was no way that Vic would ever forgive me for that. Half of me hoped that Vic would end it with me so that he would be free and be able to be happy. But the other half really didn't want to leave. I had finally found Vic, and I had never been this happy in my life. I left the kitchen and ran into Vic's bedroom, sitting on the floor against my bed with my head resting on my knees. I sat there for a long time, thinking about what I had done. And then I did the one thing that I had not done in years. The thing that had terrified me because it meant admitting that my life really was fucked up and there was no hope for me. The thing I thought was impossible because of how long I had held in all of my emotions.

I cried.

Vic's POV

I walked angrily down the road, making my way out of my street in silence. I was so angry! How dare Kellin go and do that – especially so soon after he had promised he wouldn't! He said that Eric had provoked him, but surely he could have ignored it. I carried on walking, staring at my shoes. I didn't even want to look at anyone around me. The ground beneath my feet turned to grass, and then to sand as I made it to the beach. I had subconsciously walked here. However, that wasn't surprising. The beach had always been my favourite place. I had so many great memories here.

I met Kellin here.

This seemed like the perfect place to think, so I stopped and took my shoes off and then instinctively walked to the deserted right side of the beach. The sand was warm between my toes and I found a good spot to stop – sitting down and taking my phone out of my pocket. No texts or calls – Kellin hadn't tried to contact me. I wondered what he was doing now. I was so angry that it was probably a good thing that Kellin hadn't called. I sat for a little while just thinking, trying to calm myself down. I knew he'd be upset but I didn't know how he'd deal with it. Probably break something. I almost instantly felt guilty for thinking that - Kellin wasn't defined by violence. He was so much more than that. Of course he had a problem, but he needed support and not me to tell him that I'm angry at him for messing up. That was all he had ever received in his life, and I had now become one of those people. The people that hurt him, and never cared enough to stick around. I didn't want to be one of those people. I realised that I had made a huge mistake.

I stood and put my shoes on, turning to walk home when I noticed a group of people standing at the top of the hill leading onto the beach. I squinted a little, trying to make out who it was as I walked closer. I realised who it was and changed my course a little so that they wouldn't see me. It was Eric's group, and Eric was there.

I studied him closely - Kellin had caused some real damage. His face was covered in bruises and he was clutching the back of his head. His hand was streaked red. Fuck. I did my best to shrug it off and walked past; making sure that none of them noticed me. It seemed like I had escaped, so I began walking home but then thought that it was maybe a little too soon to go back, as I needed to think everything through before returning to Kellin. I looked at my phone – I had been just over an hour but that still felt a little too soon. I checked in my pocket and found a few coins. Enough to just get a drink. I walked to the local café and went inside, buying a drink and then sitting alone at a table in the corner, giving myself space to think things through.

Kellin's POV

Vic had been gone for just over an hour and I was losing it. It was so strange to be in the house of someone you had argued with when they were out – it felt like it should be the other way around. I should have gone out, but that would only open up a number of opportunities to torture myself over this. I was safer staying in the house. But then again, why should I even care about my own well-being? I could easily just end it now and all the suffering would be over. I could move on and I would never have to look back. I could take a knife and slice across my throat and all of this would be gone. But no, I couldn't leave Vic. If there was any chance of him being able to forgive me, I had to be alive for that. I would hurt him and my friends by dying, and the thought of never seeing Vic again scared me beyond belief.

I looked up and around the room at Vic's various posters and possessions. I needed to distract myself so I stood and looked around, scanning my eyes over his revision notes on his desk before freezing when I noticed something different poking out from under them. I pulled the piece of paper out from under the pile and read the words on it - it was a poem, or song lyrics. Certain words stood out to me instantly.

_If I were you, I'd put that away._

_See, you're just wasted and thinking about the past again._

_Darling, you'll be okay._

I knew Vic wrote loads of different songs and this probably had no relation to me – but it still helped me. I knew he only wanted to make me better; I just had to stop messing up.

_Darling, you'll be okay._

Those words. I could imagine Vic saying them to me. He would be holding me, stroking my hair and whispering to me. As if we were the only two people on earth. I wanted that back. I needed him here with me. Now.

I left the room and walked down the stairs - surprised that I had not bumped into any other Fuentes family members. Maybe they were all out. I reached the bottom of the stairs as I heard the front door open and I instantly ran into the hall to see who was there. I silently wished it was Vic as I needed nothing more than to see him and tell him how sorry I was. I stumbled through the doorway from the kitchen and looked towards the door; almost falling over as I had ran in there so quickly. I looked up and a smile crept onto my face as I saw him standing there. The love of my life. My everything.

"Kellin" Vic smiled, holding his arms out in front of him for me to run into his embrace.

Then the figure behind him came out of nowhere – moving swiftly and colliding with him until Vic's body hit the floor in front of me with a loud thud.

There was silence, and then everything fell apart. _  
_


	15. Chapter 14 - Fight

Vic's POV

The sharp sting of the glass bottle hit me like a truck. There was a sudden, searing pain at the back of my head, and then I was on the floor.

"VIC!" I heard Kellin scream, and then felt the floorboards move a little under his feet as he ran to me. He tried to reach down to me but I watched as two hands from behind me reached forwards and pushed him away. I painfully turned, the room spinning around me and my eyelids drooping as the pain turned to agony. It was who I thought it was, it was Eric. He looked down to me with a sick, twisted smile and I knew that I had to get away. I pushed the floor around me and shoved myself backwards against the wall, and then Kellin stepped in front of me, blocking Eric's path.

"What the FUCK are you doing here?!" Kellin shouted at him, putting his hands up in defence in case Eric attacked him.

"I saw your little boyfriend walking home, I thought I'd just repay him for what you did to me earlier" Eric replied, and turned his head, holding up his hair with his hand to show the blood trickling down.

"This is my fight with you, Eric! How DARE you get Vic involved in this!" Kellin spat.

"He started it when he decided to become homo, if you ask me; I was doing him a favour by planning to hurt him. Maybe it would knock the gay out of him" Eric laughed. Kellin lunged forwards at him, punching him clean across the face and knocking him backwards out of the door. Kellin then glanced at me as if to check that I was okay, and then proceeded to launch himself out of the door to chase Eric. I sat up quickly against the wall, holding my head and groaning in pain, but watching them. Kellin punched Eric a few more times before he retaliated and punched him back, knocking Kellin so that he stumbled onto his knees but straight away got back up again. Kellin punched him once more but Eric grabbed his arm, pulling it behind his back and pushing Kellin to the floor. Kellin screamed in pain as his arm twisted but then pulled it out of Eric's grip, but Eric remained above him. He punched Kellin hard, and even I heard the crack as his fist collided with Kellin's jaw. Kellin screamed again and shoved Eric off of him, but he attempted to stand and was knocked back to the floor again. Eric stood above him and began kicking him in the head and in the ribs, shouting abuse at Kellin as he writhed on the floor. It hurt me to watch this happening, so I knew I needed to do something.

I stumbled to my feet, clutching my head as it span but focusing all of my attention on Eric. I staggered out of the door and down the path, silently thanking God in my head that Eric hadn't noticed me. I knew I wasn't very strong but I needed to do everything I could to help Kellin. I reached him and shoved Eric as hard as I could, forcing him to trip over Kellin's leg and fall to the floor. I then stepped over Kellin and stood in front of him so that Eric wouldn't be able to get to him. Eric angrily looked up at me and lurched forwards, his fist connecting with my stomach, causing me to fall to my knees. I heard movement behind me as Kellin attempted to stand, and threw himself forwards to push Eric away from me. I looked at Kellin, watching him fall to one knee. I put out my hand and held his shoulder, looking at him and nodding. He half-smiled back and we helped each other to stand, and then both of us faced Eric as he glared at us.

"Don't think that you'll win, because you won't!" Eric spat. "You're both a couple of homo losers, and that's all you'll ever be. It's about time someone finished you!".

Eric stepped forwards, raising his fist.

"I just called the police! They're on their way!" a voice shouted from somewhere on the right of us. We all turned to see Mike standing there, crossing his arms and glaring at Eric. "They'll be here in a second. I'd say you have about a minute to get away" Mike warned.

At the mention of the police, Eric backed away. He had a reputation at school for his many arrests, and from the look of things, he really didn't want to add anything to his record. That would probably be enough to get him taken out of school. Mike was such a smart guy for thinking of that, I was proud to be his brother.

"This isn't over!" Eric shouted, and then turned and ran.

Kellin's POV

"Are you guys okay?" Mike asked, running over to us and pulling Vic's arm around him to support him.

"I'm okay Mike, just carry Kellin" Vic said. I wanted to protest but then I felt my knees give way, and Mike caught me before I hit the floor. He put my arm around him and began to slowly walk me to the door, but I refused to move until Vic was in front of us so that I could make sure that he was okay. We got back in the house and Vic and I sat down on the couch. I was aching all over and the cuts were stinging, but I still moved my arm to put it around Vic, and I let him rest his head in the crook of my neck.

"I'm just going to get you guys bandages and stuff, I'll be one minute" Mike said, and left the room. We sat in silence together, thinking about everything that had just happened. It was all my fault that Vic had got hurt, I had started this fight.

"…I'm sorry" I whispered. Vic's head turned so that he was resting his cheek against my chest, and his hand found mine.

"I'm sorry too, Kellin. I shouldn't have got mad at you" he replied.

"I started the fight"

"I didn't believe you"

"Can we all just agree that it was both of your fault?" Mike laughed, walking back into the room with a first aid kit and some damp towels.

"Yeah, I think we can" Vic said, sitting up and smiling at me.

"We can" I smiled back.

"So, do you actually need the police here? Or an ambulance or anything?" Mike asked.

Vic and I both looked at ourselves and simultaneously shook our heads.

"I think we've had enough drama today without having to go to hospital or write a police report too" I said, and Vic nodded.

"We'll be okay" Vic assured Mike.

"I won't ask what this was about yet then" Mike said. "But I'm just glad you're both okay" he smiled.

"I'm glad we're okay too" Vic smiled back, and then looked at our hands, which were still interlocked. "We'll always be okay, as long as we're together"

~~~~~~~~~~~ The next morning ~~~~~~~~~~

Kellin's POV

I woke up the next morning in Vic's bed, with his arms around me. I was a little uncomfortable with all the bandages on and the fact that he was laying on my arm, but I wanted to cuddle him close to me, so it didn't matter. He shuffled in his sleep so that his head was buried further into my neck, and I smiled. I looked up at the ceiling and thought about the rest of last night. Vic's parents had arrived home not long after that after a long day of shopping. They had instantly fussed over us and we had both been checked over by Vic's Mom several times to make sure we were okay, but Mike had done a great job at cleaning the cuts and bandaging us up.

Vic's Father cooked for us and we sat on the couch eating it as it was too painful to sit at the table. Vic's parents and Mike had then helped us up the stairs and into Vic's bedroom, where we took off our shoes and got into his bed. They left us there to watch films for a few hours, and we talked all night until we eventually fell asleep. I wondered who had come in and turned the TV off, probably Mike.

I lay silently for a while and just listened to the sound of Vic's breathing. It was so calming. I thought about how much he meant to me. With every little breath that I was listening to now, he was living. He was a real, breathing person. Someone that actually cared about me, someone that would risk his life for me. I looked at the bandage on his head. I had caused that. But for once, it didn't matter. This was a lesson to both of us, and I knew that I would never be suicidal again - because Vic was here with me, and I needed to stay here and make him as happy as he had made me. I owed him everything and I would spend the rest of my life making it up to him.

I thought back to the day we met, the day he pulled me out of the water when I was drowning. I had been seconds away from death, seconds away from the end of everything, the end of my entire existence. Vic had saved me from that. Vic saved me from so much more than just the water that day; he had saved me from any bad experience I had ever been through. The problems with my parents, the police, people at school… none of that even mattered anymore. Because the single most important thing in my life was Vic, and I wanted nothing more than to stay with him forever and protect him from ever feeling how I had felt.

I thought about my friends. About Mike, Tony, Jaime, Vic's parents, and the other nice people in my life. These were all advantages and I could never leave any of them. I realised that for once in my life, I actually felt accepted. These people wanted me here; they were never going to send me away. If I was gone, they would miss me. I had significance, and my life finally had a purpose. I was **wanted. **And that was all that I had ever needed.

I pulled Vic closer to me, wrapping him tightly in my arms and smiling when he groaned a little in his sleep. I kissed his forehead, stroking his cheek with my thumb.

"I love you, thank you for saving me" I whispered, and then closed my eyes and snuggled into him until I fell asleep.

Vic's POV

I awoke to see the beautiful morning sunshine making its way through the blinds next to the bed, and the equally beautiful Kellin Quinn lying next to me. His eyelids fluttered as he dreamed and I smiled as his arms wrapped tighter around me. How did I get so lucky?

Meeting Kellin was the best thing that had ever happened to me. Something had always been missing, and I knew now that it was him. My favourite day would always be the day that we met – the way he smiled when Mike and I offered for him to spend the day with us. The way his hair curled after being wet from the sea, and how he beat me at every game we played in the arcade. I'd always remember that day.

But now we had so many new days ahead of us. New adventures, new discoveries, places, people and challenges. But Kellin was my constant. He'd always have me, and I'd always have him. That would never change. We were in this together, no matter what happened. We'd take on life together and we'd make it. I was sure of that. I watched as Kellin's eyelids screwed up a little and his breathing changed, before he slowly opened his beautiful eyes.

"Kellin?" I asked. He looked at me and smiled softly, taking my hand in his and stroking it with his thumb.

"Yes?" He asked.

"I love you, Kellin. Stay with me forever?"

"Couldn't get rid of me if you tried. I love you too, Vic. Always have, always will"


	16. Chapter 15 - Holiday

Chapter 14

~~~~~~ A few months later ~~~~~~~

**Kellin's POV**

**Hey, My name is Kellin Quinn. I'm still seventeen, but nearly eighteen now! I still have brown hair and blue eyes, of course. Am I still suicidal? Do I still feel broken? **

**No, actually.**

**I quite like my life now. Things really do get better.**

**I live in the Fuentes household with my boyfriend Vic, his brother Mike, and his parents. They're the closest and kindest family I have ever met, and I don't think being anywhere else could make me happier than I am here with them. **

**Today is the 17th April, meaning that my birthday is just a week away! I can't wait. Vic's birthday was two months ago (10th February), so he's already eighteen. I find it quite funny to tease him that Mike and I are both taller than him, and yet he's older than both of us. It annoys him quite a lot but he can never stay angry with me. I remember Christmas with the Fuentes family, it was the best Christmas i'd ever had. They all bought me presents (and I bought them presents too, of course) and we had a great meal, and then Vic and I stayed up the entire night talking. **

**It's not even weird to us that we already live together and share a room and Vic's parents trust us in there together, even though they know that we're a couple now. They were actually happy when we told them - they said they had suspected that something would happen between us.**

**I'm just really happy with everything in my life now, even despite the fact that our exams are about to start and we're going to have to choose a college soon. I'm a little nervous that Vic and I will pick different ones, but I need to enjoy myself for now. Nothing could ruin how happy I am being here with Vic.**

**Vic's POV**

**My name's Vic Fuentes. I live in a small house by the beach with my boyfriend Kellin, my brother Mike, and my Mother and Father. We're quite a close family, and i'm very happy with my life at the moment thanks to Kellin. Compared to how my life was before I met Kellin, i'm so much happier now. I just feel like everything is finally going right for me, and it makes me smile every time I wake up to see him in the morning. I feel complete now. **

**Kellin used to have a sort of air about him that suggested that there was a lot of bad things going around in his mind, but that seems to have disappeared. There have only been a couple of anger 'episodes' since the Eric incident, and there hasn't been one for at least a month now. He smiles so much more now, and it's genuine. The good thing is that whenever there is an episode, we always come out of it with a stronger bond than before. Kellin means so much to me, I never want him out of my life. Ever. **

**As for the whole Eric situation; there was a bit of trouble after that, especially with his friends. There were a couple of fights (one where Jaime had to step in and got a black eye that he still holds a grudge against me for to this day), but not long after, Eric was arrested again for something outside of school and was forced to leave. His group sort of disbanded after that, and there's no problem now. **

**The only real problems that Kellin and I are going through is the whole 'choosing colleges' thing, and the small arguments we get into sometimes. It usually consists of one of us overreacting to something little that the other one did, screaming at eachother, avoiding each other for a few hours and then apologising. I guess it's natural really. **

**Our friendship group is also perfect at the moment. We all meet most weekends and go to Tony's house to play xbox because he got a really cool new TV - it's HUUUGE!**

**Kellin and I even go on little dates sometimes; we go and get pizza somewhere, watch movies, and even go on walks on the beach sometimes - but Kellin still refuses to get into the water. Bad memories. **

**I'd say that we're doing really well right now, and I wouldn't change it for the world. I really hope that things stay how they are. **

Friday 17th April

Kellin's POV

I threw myself backwards on the bed, bouncing a little and steadying myself so that I didn't fall off the side.

"It's finally over! Two WHOLE weeks off of school! Hallelujah!" I shouted.

Vic stood by the bed with his arms crossed, looking down at me and laughing lightly, shaking his head.

"But you do know that our exams start straight after this holiday, right?" he reminded me. I sighed loudly and he laughed. "As much as you hate it, we're going to have to actually revise"

"When did you stop being fun?" I laughed. He stepped back, mocking offense.

"That one actually hurt" he said, turning and covering his eyes to look like he was crying. I rolled my eyes and sat up, putting my hand out to reach for his. He moved away and faced the opposite wall with his back to me. "It's too late Kellin, you upset me now"

"Shut up" I laughed, standing and putting my head on his shoulder, wrapping my arms around his waist. I kissed lightly up his neck and behind his ear, nibbling on his earlobe until his breathing slowed. "I'm really, really sorry" I whispered, mocking being seductive. He chuckled a little and then turned in my arms to face me. He put his forehead against mine, looked into my eyes and then wrapped his arms around my neck. I felt his hands weave between my hair as he started playing with it on the back of my head.

"Prove it" he said.

"Okay, how?" I asked, smirking.

"Let's get pizza tonight, and we'll watch all of my favourite movies. And you can spend the whole night telling me just how much you love me" Vic whispered and half-smiled; the corners of his lips slowly turning up and his pupils getting wider. He winked.

"Or..." I began, moving my head slightly so that my lips were a mere centremetre away from his. "I could show you" I smiled, and then brought his lips to mine. We kissed for what felt like only a second but may have been a long time, and then it was deepened as he used his hands behind my neck to pull me closer. I obliged and pulled him closer in my arms - eventually managing to pull him forwards so much that I fell onto my back on the bed with him leaning on top of me. His lips left mine in order for him to start kissing down my neck, and he stopped and sucked on the collarbone. My breathing slowed and became deeper and he laughed at this, his lips vibrating a little on my skin. He sucked the skin and made a very prominent red mark, before I decided that it was about time that I was in control. I pushed him off of me and to the side, climbing on top of him. The movement made him squeak a little and I laughed in response, and then began to kiss his neck how he had kissed mine - making sure to breathe deeply into his ear as I passed it. I then felt his hands either side of my face, pulling me back up to kiss him on the lips. I did for a moment - a very strong, passionate kiss, before pulling him back up to his feet. I started to get excited and between kisses I tugged on his shirt, trying to pull it up. I was just about to get it off of him when his Mom called from downstairs, telling us that it was time for dinner. He broke the kiss and pulled his shirt back down, winking at me as a form of teasing because he knew that it would drive me crazy. He then walked past me and out of the room, turning and smirking at me again before walking down the stairs.

_Ugh, _I thought. Vic never really seemed like a seductive person, but once you got him in the mood, he could be the biggest fucking tease ever. And I knew that he loved how angry it made me.

Vic's POV

I sat at the table watching Kellin sit in the seat opposite me and Mike sit next to him, while my Mom sat on my right.

"Where's Dad?" Mike asked.

"Had to be called into work this evening, he'll be back tomorrow morning. I actually wanted to talk to you guys about that, you remember that Katelynne and I are going away on a shopping weekend, right? So it looks like for tonight it's just you three in the house" Mama Fuentes said.

"Actually..." Mike began. "Tony invited me over, he got the new Halo game and he said we could sit up all night and play it"

"That's okay then" Mama replied. "It's just you guys in the house then, Kellin and Vic. Will you guys be okay?"

"We'll be alright" Kellin smiled, giving me a knowing look from across the table without being caught. I knew what he was thinking, every time we were home alone he took it as an opportunity to play Singstar as loudly as possible because yes, he had the mental age of a twelve year old girl. Of course he'd want to do other stuff though -this was Kellin we were talking about.

We spent the rest of the meal talking about school and other 'unimportant' things (as Kellin described them...) and then Mike left to go and meet Tony. Kellin and I went into the living room to watch TV and after about an hour, we heard Mama shout that she was leaving and to 'be good and study hard'. Kellin politely said 'of course we will, we're responsible!' and then burst into laughter the second she left the house.

"So, what are we actually going to do tonight?" I asked, crossing my legs and sitting on the floor infront of the TV with a bag of jelly beans. Kellin got down from the couch and joined me on the floor, picking up a bag of gummy bears and opening them.

"Well, I haven't forgotten what I promised you this morning. So we can watch some films and later tonight we'll order a midnight pizza. Sound good?" Kellin asked, smiling sidewards at me and then stuffing ten gummy bears in his mouth.

"Sounds great" I smiled back, politely taking one gummy bear from the bag in his hand and eating it.

"After Singstar of course" Kellin added, and then froze when he saw me take the gummy bear. "Did you seriously just do that?" he asked, the expression leaving his face.

"Maybe I did" I smiled evilly, before reaching out and taking another one.

"It's fucking ON Fuentes!" Kellin shouted, launching himself forwards and pushing me to the ground. I burst out laughing and writhed underneath him, trying to get away. However, I failed. Kellin may have looked pretty, but he was unbelievably strong. I attempted to attack his wrist so that he'd lose balance, and I then pushed him to the side. He fell off of me and I took this opportunity to climb on top of him, pinning his wrists down above his head. "...Kinky" Kellin laughed, and I blushed and got off of him. I still wasn't great at the whole 'sexual references' thing, even if it was a joke. I was still a little embarassed. Kellin sat up next to me, leaning his shoulder on the couch and smiling at me. "Sorry, I forgot that you're that immature that it makes you blush when I say something sexual"

"You're calling ME immature?" I laughed back. "I think you're wrong there. When was the last time you revised?"

"Shut up" Kellin replied.

"Make me"

"Okay"

Kellin leaned forwards slowly, kissing me lightly and then pulling back again. This was one of the occasional kisses that we would share when Kellin was in a good mood and was genuinely happy. These were my favourite kisses because they were so sweet and simple. Kellin stood and put his hand out, helping me to my feet.

"Sit down" Kellin ordered me. "I'll be right back"

I obliged and sat for a moment, listening to him walking around in the kitchen, walking up the stairs, pacing in our room and then walking back down again. Kellin returned to the room with several cans of Coke and Mountain Dew, some more bags of candy and bowls, popcorn, a huge blanket, some pillows and a couple of DVDs. I had no idea how he managed to carry it all. He put the candy and popcorn into bowls and put a drink each in front of us, and then put in the DVD and sat down next to me, putting the pillows behind us and pulling the blanket on top of us. He sat back on the couch and pulled me towards him, letting me rest my head on his shoulder and putting his arm around me. I watched the commercials on the TV until the actual film came on, and I laughed when I saw it.

"Kellin... is this just a ton of episodes of old cartoons?" I asked, giggling.

"Yes, yes it is. You think i'm immature and I think you're immature. So let's be kids together for the night" he smiled, pulling me a little closer and resting the side of his head on mine. We watched the episodes for most of the night and then eventually lay down and fell asleep at around 3am, with Kellin at the back of the couch and me at the front, with his arms around me. It was the best possible start to the two week holiday that we could have, and I just hoped that things would get even better.

But of course, not everything always goes the way you want it to.

_**This was the first time i've ever written anything relatively 'smutty', so I apologise if it wasn't very good but I wanted to try. I want this fic to sort of go in every category so i'm working on my writing styles. **_

_**Another thing to add: I try to use American words such as 'Mom', 'couch' and 'candy' to make it realistic but I might miss some because i'm English and I don't really know all the alternative words - I know i've missed some before. Sorry if I get it wrong!**_

_**Thank you for reading, after the overwhelming response i've got to this story, it made me realise that I just couldn't end it yet. I promise it's going to get more interesting within the next few chapters...**_

_**Thank you all so much for viewing this (I can't believe how many views I have on this!) and the reviews are amazing, they made me so happy! **_

_**The next chapter should hopefully be up within the next few days (hopefully tomorrow) but updates may be slow because i'm currently going through my exams and I'm unbelievably stressed haha. But the feedback on this fic is making me feel so much better, so thank you so, so much. I hope you liked this chapter and all the future ones!**_

_**And just for anyone that hasn't seen already - my tumblr is punkasgard. I follow back and all updates about this fic will be on there. **_

_**Thanks! - Jaimee x (Not Jaime, sadly...) **_


	17. Author's Note

Hey Guys! So my exams are over and I have a little more free time now so I will do my best to update - I'm writing now and the next chapter should be up by tomorrow evening. The reviews I have gotten have made me unbelievably happy and I wanted to thank you all for being so nice to me! I'm finding the tumblrs etc I have been given now but my twitter and tumblr names have changed, they are:

- archangel_misha (twitter)

and - archangel-misha (tumblr).

Just follow/ tweet/ message me and i'll follow you back!

I'm so sorry for not updating for so long but I promise I will from now on. Thank you, and I love you all! 3

(p.s. this now has over 10,000 views and I practically screamed when I saw that - thank you so much!)


	18. Chapter 16 - Tree

Kellin awoke to the sound of Vic's light breathing. He looked up in his arms to see Vic still asleep, and smiled at the sight of his eyelids fluttering as he dreamed. He wondered what Vic dreamt about. He slowly shuffled off of him and got out of bed, careful not to wake him. Kellin leaned over the bed and looked out of the window to see that it was still not fully light. He looked at the time – 7:30am. Nice and early then. He wrote Vic a note saying that he had gone out for a run, got dressed and left. He knew that Vic wouldn't buy that Kellin had gone for a run, but he at least wanted to just go somewhere for a while, and it served as a good enough excuse. It was the beginning of the second week away from school, and so far they had spent every day doing things together. Spending time with Vic was his favourite thing to do in the world but he decided that he should at least have one morning to himself. He went into a nearby game store, picking up a couple of the games and reading the backs. There was nothing he was really interested in. He went in a few more shops before he grew bored and decided to retreat to the park. He found a tree and climbed it, sitting on a branch that was fairly high up but sturdy enough to support his weight. He sat there for a while, enjoying the morning air and watching as a few people walked down the street next to the park.

Kellin's thoughts were interrupted when he heard shouting from a woman nearby, and turned his head to see her screaming as her dog chased after a cat. They ran around a little before the cat reached Kellin's tree, climbing up above and across from him. The woman ran to her dog below the tree who was now barking and jumping close to Kellin's heels, pulling on his collar and trying to get him to calm down.

"The cat! Is it hurt?" The woman shouted. Kellin looked up through the branches, but he could only see the cat's terrified face.

"I can't tell, hold on, I'll just…" Kellin moved to climb up further, resting his right foot on a stump to push himself up. The dog seemed to sense that he was moving towards the cat and jerked away from its owner, jumping up against the tree towards him. It made Kellin jump and he lost his footing, falling from the tree with a shout. He hit the floor, landing on his right ankle and hearing a snapping sound. The dog continued to bark at the tree and Kellin was thankful that it didn't come after him.

"Oh my god, are you okay?" the woman asked, kneeling next to him. Kellin looked down to his ankle, which was bent in an abnormal way. "Oh dear! I'll call an ambulance!" the woman said.

"Please don't" Kellin protested, his heart sinking at the mention of a hospital. He tried to continue to protest but the pain was getting worse, so he allowed the woman to do it.

Under five minutes later, Kellin was being helped into the ambulance and they began to drive to the hospital.

Vic woke up, sitting up in bed and realising that Kellin wasn't in the room with him. He thought that maybe Kellin was in the shower or downstairs, but then he saw the note next to his bed saying that Kellin had gone for a walk. He got up, pulling some clothes from his closet and putting them on, and then combing his hair. He walked downstairs to find Mike sitting at the kitchen table.

"Morning" Mike smiled, biting into a piece of toast.

"Morning, did you see Kellin before he left?" Vic asked.

"Nope" Mike replied between mouthfuls, and Vic sighed, walking to the fridge and pulling out some juice. He still worried about Kellin – his wasn't completely over his anger and Vic was just waiting for the next incident. He hoped that Kellin would be okay.

He joined Mike at the table, picking up the newspaper and scanning through the different uninteresting articles.

"Where are Mom and Dad?" Vic asked.

"They went out – it's their shopping day together, remember?"

"Oh yeah" Vic replied, looking down. He knew they wouldn't be back until late that night.

He and Mike spent the morning playing video games and he called Kellin several times but there was no answer. He was starting to get worried, when his phone lit up on the other side of the room and he heard the familiar ringtone. He walked over, looking at the screen.

_Kellin. _

"Hello? Kellin?" Vic said.

"Hey Vic…" Kellin replied on the other side in a husky voice.

"Dude, where are you?" Vic asked.

"The hospital…"

"Why? What happened?"

"I kinda fell out of a tree" Kellin laughed. "I'm okay though, it's just a fracture. The doctors said I could go but I need a lift home from the hospital"

"Okay, hold on. I'll call my parents and they should be there soon" Vic replied.

"Thanks, Vic"

"No problem, Kells"

Vic heard the front door open and ran into the hallway, watching as his Father opened the door wide and Kellin came through on crutches with his leg in plaster. His eyes met Vic's and he smiled in a sympathetic way, which was returned. They all helped Kellin into his seat in the living room and then the questions began.

"So… what happened to you again?" Mike asked, looking up from his game.

"I fell out of a tree. I was trying to get a cat down and I sort of slipped" Kellin replied. Vic sighed, relieved to hear that there hadn't been any form of a fight.

"How long did the doctor say you'd have to wear the cast for?" Vic's Mom asked.

"A few weeks. He said I'd need to stay home and rest for at least three, and then I'd be on crutches for at least a further four" Kellin sighed.

"Let's get you into bed then" Vic's Mom said, and they all helped him into their room and in Kellin's bed – which had been put in the room despite the fact that Kellin and Vic always shared anyway.

"Are you going to be okay in here?" Vic's Mom asked.

"I'll take care of him" Vic replied, and Kellin nodded.

"Well okay, call me if you need anything" She suggested and then everyone except Vic left. Vic sat down on the end of the bed, making sure to not accidentally touch Kellin's leg.

"Are you going to be okay in bed for that long?" Vic asked.

"I'll still have you here, so I'll be fine" Kellin smiled.

"What about when I go back to school in a week?"

"Well, I'll have you here when you get back so I can entertain myself while you're in school" Kellin reasoned.

"Okay then, as long as you're okay"

The week went fairly slow – it was the same routine of Vic waking up, helping Kellin to wash, bringing Kellin breakfast, watching movies with him, working on their holiday project, helping him to walk a little around the room, putting him back into bed, making him dinner and repeating. That is, until school began again.

Vic woke up to the sound of his alarm and the morning sunshine coming through the curtains onto his face. He sat up in bed, rubbing his eyes and yawning, looking at the clock. 7 AM. He turned to Kellin to see him laying in bed, holding his phone above him and typing.

"Morning, what are you doing?" Vic asked.

"Twitter" Kellin replied without looking from his phone.

"Hmm, okay" Vic replied, standing and stretching in the morning air. He walked over to the wardrobe, pulling out the clothes he had got ready the night before and changing. Kellin still didn't look from his phone. Vic combed his hair and began to put his books into his backpack, watching Kellin carefully as he scrolled and typed.

"Are you sure you're going to be okay here while I'm gone?" Vic asked.

"Yep" Kellin replied, and continued to type.

"Kellin, look at me" Vic commanded, and Kellin lowered his phone, looking over.

"Yes?"

"You may have hurt yourself, and I may be looking after you, but listen princess – I'm not your servant. Okay? So eye contact is the least you could do for me" Vic moaned. He saw the smallest hint of anger flare up in Kellin's eyes, but watched as he mentally calmed himself and sat up, locking his phone and putting it on the nightstand.

"Okay, I'm sorry Vic" Kellin said. Vic smiled a little, walking over and kissing Kellin lightly on the lips, stroking his hair.

"It's okay" Vic reassured him, and then turned to pick up his phone and his house keys. "I'll see you later on, okay?"

"Yeah, have a good day"

"You too"

Vic left the room, waving to Kellin once more and then going to the bathroom to brush his teeth. He had showered the night before because he knew he was too out of routine to get up so early in the morning and shower. Once he had finished, he walked downstairs and got some cereal out of the cupboard, pouring it and then getting the milk out of the fridge. He walked over to the table and sat next to his Father – opposite Mike.

"You're home" Vic said, looking at his Father.

"Yes" His Father replied. "My work gave me the opportunity to work nights this week so I can stay home during the day and make sure that Kellin is okay. That means you can go out after school if you want and you don't have to worry about getting home quickly"

Vic thought about it for a while, but he couldn't see that there was anywhere he really wanted to go. Once he reached school, he and Mike met up with Tony and Jaime and they talked for a while until the first bell rang. He sat down in his first lesson – which luckily, was in front of Jaime so they were able to whisper quietly while the teacher was talking. He felt Jaime tap his back and turned around a little to hear him better.

"Hey, Vic… You wanna come over today?" Jaime asked.

"Sorry man, I'm taking care of Kellin. It wouldn't be fair to leave him. Maybe you could come round another day instead?" Vic suggested.

"But I've got the new band hero game and you don't have the same console as me! Maybe tomorrow? Tony will be there too" Jaime protested.

"Maybe tomorrow, I'll think about it" Vic said.

"Okay, you won't regret coming. It rocks!" Jaime smiled.

The rest of the day went fairly slow; it was mostly just a case of returning projects and starting the new case studies. Eventually, the last bell rang and Vic left his lesson to meet up with the others. They all walked home together until they reached the crossroads where they would go their separate ways.

"Text me about it later?" Jaime asked after spending a whole walk talking about how amazing his new game was. To be honest, it did sound amazing to Vic and like something he would want to do, but he didn't want to leave Kellin at home without him.

"Yeah, I'll text you" Vic replied, and then he and Mike left to walk home.

Once they reached their house, Vic went straight upstairs to see Kellin. He walked in the room to find Kellin laying on the bed, eating cheetos and watching cartoons on the TV. In the middle of the floor was Vic's guitar, with two broken strings.

"Kellin! What did you do?" Vic asked, running over and picking it up, examining the frayed edges of the broken strings.

"I wanted to play it, but I sort of broke it, dropped it and then I couldn't reach down there to pick it up" Kellin explained.

"This is my favourite guitar, Kellin! My Dad bought me this when I was little!"

Kellin rolled his eyes.

"It's your _only _guitar, Vic"

"That's not the point! Do you have any idea how expensive these strings are?" Vic shouted.

"Calm down, I'll get it fixed" Kellin replied. "I'm sorry"

Vic sat down on his bed, sighing and crossing his arms. He needed to not get mad at Kellin right now; an argument was the last thing they needed. He brushed it off and began trying to talk to Kellin again, but things remained roughly the same all night. By the end of the night, they were both annoyed and ignoring each other. Vic brushed his teeth, getting into bed and pulling out his phone. He was beyond annoyed and didn't want to be dealing with Kellin right now. He was angry and starting to rethink working his whole schedule around Kellin. He was allowed to do things for himself. He clicked on Jaime's name, bringing up the box for a new text. He began typing.

"Hey, about tomorrow…. I'm in"

He clicked send, laid down and went to sleep.


	19. AUTHOR'S NOTE - IMPORTANT

Hey guys so this is really important -

I think my tumblr has been hacked because I can't post anything, reblog anything or follow anyone. So to the people that wanted me to follow them, sorry but I can't :(

I'm going to make a new one which should be in the author's note of the next chapter, but for now, feel free to follow my twitter: archangel_misha and i'll follow you back, then dm me and tell me you're from the fic and we can talk :)

I'd love to talk to you guys so please feel free to do so because it would make my day to get to talk to some new people. The next chapter should be up within a few days hopefully.

Thank you!

- Jaimee x


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